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On the Trail 

An Outdoor Book for Girls 



By 
LINA ^EARD 

AND 

ADELIA BELLE BEARD 



With Illustrations by the Authors 



NEW YORK 

Charles Scribner's Sons 

1915 



Copyright, 1915, by 
CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 



Published June, 1915 




JUN 15 1915 
©a,A406301 



o 



TO ALL GIRLS 

WHO LOVE THE LIFE OF THE OPEN 

WE DEDICATE THIS BOOK 



PRESENTATION 

The joyous, exhilarating call of the wilderness and the 
forest camp is surely and steadily penetrating through 
the barriers of brick, stone, and concrete; through the 
more or less artificial life of town and city; and the Ameri- 
can girl is listening eagerly. It is awakening in her long- 
ings for free, wholesome, and adventurous outdoor life, 
for the innocent delights of nature-loving Thoreau and 
bird-loving Burroughs. Sturdy, independent, self-reliant, 
she is now demanding outdoor books that are genuine 
and filled with practical information; books that tell 
how to do worth-while things, that teach real woodcraft 
and are not adapted to the girl supposed to be afraid 
of a caterpillar or to shudder at sight of a harmless snake. 

In answer to the demand, "On the Trail" has been 
written. The authors' deep desire is to help girls re- 
spond to this new, insistent call by pointing out to 
them the open trail. It is their hope and wish that 
their girl readers may seek the charm of the wild and 
may find the same happiness in the life of the open that 
the American boy has enjoyed since the first settler built 
his little cabin on the shores of the New World. To 
forward this object, the why and how, the where and 
when of things of camp and trail have been embodied 
in this book. 



viii Presentation 

Thanks are due to Edward Cave, president and editor 
of Recreation^ for kindly allowing the use of some of his 
wild-life photographs. 

LiNA Beard, 

x\delia Belle Beard. 
Flushing, N. Y., 
March i6, 1915. 



CONTENTS 

CHAPTER PAGE 

I. Trailing 3 

II. Woodcraft 21 

III. Camping 44 

IV. What to Wear on the Trail 84 

V. Outdoor Handicraft 106 

VI. Making Friends with the Outdoor Folk 119 

VII. Wild Food on the Trail 138 

VIII. Little Foes of the Trailer 165 

IX. On the Trail with Your Camera . . . 187 

X. On and in the Water 205 

XI. Useful Knots and How to Tie Them . . 233 

XII. Accidents 244 

XIII. Camp Fun and Frolics 255 

XIV. Happy and Sane Sunday in Camp . . . 269 



ILLUSTRATIONS 

Over-night camp Frontispiece 

PAGE 

One can generally pass around obstructions like this on the trail 5 

Difficulties of the Adirondack trail 9 

Blazing the trail by bending down and breaking branches . . 11 

Returning, to camp by the blazed trail . 13 

Foot-prints of animals 17 

Foot-prints of animals 19 

Ink impressions of leaves 23 

Ink impressions of leaves 24 

Ink impressions of leaves 25 

Pitch-pine and cone 26 

Sycamore leaf and fruit of sycamore 26 

How to use the axe 29 

The compass and the North Star 37 

A permanent camp 49 

Outdoor shelters 51 

Dining-tent, handy racks, and log bedstead 53 

A forest camp by the water 55 

In camp 57 

The bough-bed, the cook-fire, and the wall-tent 59 

Soft wood . 63 

xi 



xii Illustrations 

PAGE 

Hard wood 65 

Bringing wood for the fire * 69 

Camp fires and camp sanitation 81 

Trailers' outfits 87 

The head-net and blanket-roll 91 

Some things to carry and how to carry them loi 

Handicraft in the woods 107 

Outdoor dressing-table, camp-cupboard, hammock- frame, seat, 

and pot-hook 109 

Camp-chair, biscuit-stick, and blanket camp-bed iii 

The birch-bark dish that will hold fluids. Details of making . 115 

A bear would rather be your friend than your enemy . . . 118 

Making friends with a ruffed grouse 120 

Found on the trail 122 

Timber wolves 124 

Baby moose 126 

Stalking wild birds 128 

The fish-hawk will sometimes build near the ground .... 131 

Antelopes of the western plains 135 

Good food on the trail 143 

Fruits found principally in the south and the middle west . . 147 

Fruits found principally in the north and the middle west . . 151 

Fruits common to most of the States 155 

Hickory nuts, sweet and bitter 159 

Nuts with soft shells. Beechnut and chestnut 161 

Poisonous and non- poisonous snakes 173 



Illustrations xiii 

PAGE 

Plants poison to the touch i8i 

Plants poison to the taste 185 

The white birch-tree makes a fine background for the beaver . 191 

Blacktail deer snapped with a background of snow .... 193 

The skunk 195 

The porcupine stood in the shade but the background was light 197 

Photographing a woodcock from ambush ....... 199 

The country through which you pass, with a trailer in the fore- 

groimd 201 

Method of protecting roots to keep plants fresh while you carry 

them to camp for photographing 203 

A rowboat is a safer craft than a canoe 206 

Keep your body steady 208 

Canoeing on placid waters 210 

Bring your canoe up broadside to the shore 212 

How to use the paddle and a flat-bottomed rowboat . . . . 215 

The raft of logs 219 

Primitive weaving in raft building 221 

Learn to be at home in the water 225 

For dinner 229 

The veteran 23 1 

Bends in knot tying 235 

Figure eight knot 237 

Overhand bowline knot 237 

Underhand bowline knot 239 

Sheepshank knot . 239 



xiv Illustrations 



T, , ,. , PAGE 

Parcel slip-knot .... 

^ 241 

Cross-tie parcel knot . . 

241 

Fisherman's knot . . 

241 

The halter, slip-knot, and hitching- tie 24^ 

The fireman's lift . . 

245 

Aids in "first aid" . . 

247 

Restoring respiration . . . . , 2cr 

When darkness closes in 

259 

Wood-thrush .... . 
261 

Yellow-throated vireo . . ^ 
262 

Fire without matches . . ^ 
204 

Fire without the bow . . . 
267 



On the Trail 



ON THE TRAIL 



CHAPTER I 



TRAILING 



What the Outdoor World Can Do for Girls. How to Find the 
Trail and How to Keep It 

There is a something in you, as in every one, every 
man, woman, girl, and boy, that requires the tonic life 
of the wild. You may not know it, many do not, but 
there is a part of your nature that only the wild can 
reach, satisfy, and develop. The much-housed, over- 
heated, overdressed, and over-entertained life of most 
girls is artificial, and if one does not turn away from and 
leave it for a while, one also becomes greatly artificial 
and must go through life not knowing the joy, the strength, 
the poise that real outdoor life can give. 

What is it about a true woodsman that instantly com- 
pels our respect, that sets him apart from the men who 
might be of his class in village or town and puts him in 
a class by himself, though he may be exteriorly rough 
and have little or no book education? The real Adiron- 
dack or the North Woods guide, alert, clean-limbed, clear- 
eyed, hard-muscled, bearing his pack-basket or duffel- 
bag on his back, doing all the hard work of the camp, 
never loses his poise or the simple dignity which he shares 
with all the things of the wild. It is bred in him, is a 
part of himself and the life he leads. He is as conscious 
of his superior knowledge of the woods as an astronomer 

3 



4 On the Trail 

is of his knowledge of the stars, and patiently tolerates 
the ignorance and awkwardness of the " tenderfoot " from 
the city. Only a keen sense of humor can make this 
toleration possible, for I have seen things done by a city- 
dweller at camp that would enrage a woodsman, unless 
the irresistibly funny side of it made him laugh his in- 
ward laugh that seldom reaches the surface. 
I To live for a while in the wild strengthens the muscles 
Sj of your mind as well as of your body. Flabby thoughts 
and flabby muscles depart together and are replaced by en- 
thusiasm and vigor of purpose, by strength of limb and 
chest and back. To have seems not so desirable as to he. 
When you have once come into sympathy with this world 
of the wild — which holds our cultivated, artificial world in 
the hollow of its hand and gives it life — new joy, good, 
wholesome, heartfelt joy, will well up within you. New 
and absorbing interests will claim your attention. You 
will breathe deeper, stand straighter. The small, petty 
things of life will lose their seeming importance and 
great things will look larger and infinitely more worth 
while. You will know that the woods, the fields, the 
streams and great waters bear wonderful messages for 
you, and, little by little, you will learn to read them. 

The majority of people who visit the up-to-date hotels 
of the Adirondacks, which their wily proprietors call 
camps, may think they see the wild and are living in it. 
But for them it is only a big picnic-ground through which 
they rush with unseeing eyes and whose cloisters they 
invade with unfeeling hearts, seemingly for the one pur- 
pose of building a fire, cooking their lunch, eating it, and 
^ then hurrying back to the comforts of the hotel and the 
gayety of hotel life. 

At their careless and noisy approach the forest suddenly 
withdraws itself into its deep reserve and reveals no 
secrets. It is as if they entered an empty house and 



6 On the Trail 

passed through deserted rooms, but all the time the in- 
truders are stealthily watched by unseen, hostile, or 
frightened eyes. Every form of moving life is stilled and 
magically fades into its background. The tawny rabbit 
halts amid the dry leaves of a fallen tree. No one sees 
it. The sinuous weasel slips silently under a rock by the 
side of the trail and is unnoticfed. The mother grouse 
crouches low amid the underbrush and her little ones 
follow her example, but the careless company has no 
time to observe and drifts quickly by. Only the irre- 
pressible red squirrel might be seen, but isn't, when he 
loses his balance and drops to a lower branch in his efforts 
to miss nothing of the excitement of the invasion. 

This is not romance, it is truth. To think sentimentally 
about nature, to sit by a babbling brook and try to put 
your supposed feelings into verse, will not help you to 
know the wild. The only way to cultivate the sympathy 
and understanding which will enable you to feel its heart- 
beats, is to go to it humbly, ready to see the wonders it 
can show; ready to appreciate and love its beauties and 
ready to meet on friendly and cordial terms the animal 
life whose home it is. The wild world is, indeed, a 
wonderful world; how wonderful and interesting we learn 
only by degrees and actual experience. It is free, but 
not lawless; to enter it fully we must obey these laws 
which are slowly and silently impressed upon us. It is 
a wholesome, life-giving, inspiring world, and when you 
have learned to conform to its rules you are met on every 
hand by friendly messengers to guide you and teach you 
the ways of the wild: wild birds, wild fruits and plants, 
and gentle, furtive, wild animals. You cannot put their 
messages into words, but you can feel them; and then, 
suddenly, you no longer care for soft cushions and rugs, 
for shaded lamps, dainty fare and finery, for paved streets 
and concrete walks. You want to plant your feet upon 



Trailing 7 

the earth in its natural state, however rugged or boggy- 
it may be. You want your cushions to be of the soft 
moss-beds of the piny woods, and, with the unparalleled 
sauce of a healthy, hearty appetite, you want to eat your 
dinner out of doors, cooked over the outdoor fire, and to 
drink water from a birch-bark cup, brought cool and 
dripping from the bubbling spring. 

You want, oh! how you want to sleep on a springy bed 
of balsam boughs, wrapped in soft, warm, woollen blankets 
with the sweet night air of all outdoors to breathe while 
you sleep. You want your flower-garden, not with great 
and gorgeous masses of bloom in evident, orderly beds, 
but keeping always charming surprises for unexpected 
times and in unsuspected places. You want the flowers 
that grow without your help in ways you have not planned; 
that hold the enchantment of the wilderness. Some peo- 
ple are born with this love for the wild, some attain it, 
but in either case the joy is there, and to find it you must 
seek it. Your chosen trail may lead through the primeval 
'forests or into the great western deserts or plains; or it 
may reach only left-over bits of the wild which can be 
found at no great distance from home. Even a bit of 
meadow or woodland, even an uncultivated field on the 
hilltop, will give you a taste of the wild; and if you strike 
the trail in the right spirit you will find upon arrival that 
these remnants of the wild world have much to show and 
to teach you. There are the sky, the clouds, the lungfuls 
of pure air, the growing things which send their roots 
where they will and not in a man-ordered way. There 
is the wild life that obeys no man's law: the insects, the 
birds, and small four-footed animals. On all sides you 
will find evidences of wild life if you will look for it. Here 
you may make camp for a day and enjoy that day as 
much as if it were one of many in a several weeks' camp- 
ing trip. 



8 On the Trail 

However, this is not to be a book of glittering gener- 
alities but, as far as it can be made, one of practical help- 
fulness in outdoor life; therefore when you are told to 
strike the trail you must also be told how to do it. 

When You Strike the Trail 

For any journey, by rail or by boat, one has a general 
idea of the direction to be taken, the character of the 
land or water to be crossed, and of what one will find at 
the end. So it should be in striking the trail. Learn all 
you can about the path you are to follow. Whether it is 
plain or obscure, wet or dry; where it leads; and its length, 
measured more by time than by actual miles. A smooth, 
even trail of five miles will not consume the time and 
strength that must be expended upon a trail of half that 
length which leads over uneven ground, varied by bogs 
and obstructed by rocks and fallen trees, or a trail that 
is all up-hill climbing. If you are a novice and accus- 
tomed to walking only over smooth and level ground, 
you must allow more time for covering the distance than 
an experienced person would require and must count 
upon the expenditure of more strength, because your feet 
are not trained to the wilderness paths with their pitfalls 
and traps for the unwary, and every nerve and muscle 
will be strained to secure a safe foothold amid the tangled 
roots, on the slippery, moss-covered logs, over precipitous 
rocks that lie in your path. It will take time to pick 
your way over boggy places where the water oozes up 
through the thin, loamy soil as through a sponge; and 
experience alone will teach you which hummock of grass 
or moss will make a safe stepping-place and will not 
sink beneath your weight and soak your feet with hidden 
water. Do not scorn to learn all you can about the trail 
you are to take, although your questions may call forth 



10 On the Trail 

superior smiles. It is not that you hesitate to encounter 
difficulties, but that you may prepare for them. In un- 
known regions take a responsible guide with you, unless 
the trail is short, easily followed, and a frequented one. 
Do not go alone through lonely places; and, being on the 
trail, keep it and try no explorations of your own, at least 
not until you are quite familiar with the country and the 
ways of the wild. 

Blazing the Trail 

A woodsman usually blazes his trail by chipping with 
his axe the trees he passes, leaving white scars on their 
trunks, and to follow such a trail you stand at your first 
tree until you see the blaze on the next, then go to that 
and look for the one farther on; going in this way from 
tree to tree you keep the trail though it may, underfoot, 
be overgrown and indistinguishable. 

If you must make a trail of your own, blaze it as you 
go by bending down and breaking branches of trees, 
underbrush, and bushes. Let the broken branches be 
on the side of bush or tree in the direction you are going, 
but bent down away from that side, or toward the bush, 
so that the lighter underside of the leaves will show and 
make a plain trail. Make these signs conspicuous and 
close together, for in returning, a dozen feet without the 
broken branch will sometimes confuse you, especially 
as everything has a different look when seen from the op- 
posite side. By this same token it is a wise precaution 
to look back frequently as you go and impress the home- 
Ward-bound landmarks on your memory. If in your 
wanderings you have branched off and made ineffectual 
or blind trails which lead nowhere, and, in returning to 
camp, you are led astray by one of them, do not leave the 
f»alse trail and strike out to make a new one, but turn 



n On the Trail 

back and follow the false trail to its beginning, for it 
must lead to the true trail again. Don't lose sight of your 
broken branches. 

If you carry a hatchet or small axe you can make a 
permanent trail by blazing the trees as the woodsmen do. 
Kephart advises blazing in this way: make one blaze on 
the side of the tree away from the camp and two blazes 
on the side toward the camp. Then when you return 
you look for the one blaze. In leaving camp again to 
follow the same trail, you look for the two blazes. If you 
should lose the trail and reach it again you will know to 
a certainty which direction to take, for two blazes mean 
camp on this side; one blaze, away from camp on this side. 

To Know an Animal Trail 

To know an animal trail from one made by men is 
quite important. It is easy to be led astray by animal 
trails, for they are often well defined and, in some cases, 
well beaten. To the uninitiated the trails will appear the 
same, but there is a difference which, in a recent number 
of Field and Stream, Mr. Arthur Rice defines very clearly 
in this way: " Men step on things. Animals step over or 
around things." Then again an animal trail frequently 
passes under bushes and low branches of trees where men 
would cut or break their way through. To follow an 
animal trail is to be led sometimes to water, often to a 
bog or swamp, at times to the animal's den, which in the 
case of a bear might not be exactly pleasant. 

Lost in the Woods 

We were in the wilderness of an Adirondack forest 
making camp for the day and wanted to see the beaver- 
dam which, we were told, was on the edge of a near-by 



14 On the Trail 

lake. The guide was busy cooking dinner and we would 
not wait for his leisure, but leaving the rest of the party, 
we started off confidently, just two of us, down the per- 
fectly plain trail. For a short distance there was a beaten 
path, then, suddenly, the trail came to an abrupt end. 
We looked this side and that. No trail, no appearance 
of there ever having been one. With a careless wave of 
his arm, the guide had said: " Keep in that direction." 
" That " being to the left, to the left we therefore turned 
and stormed our way through thicket and bramble, break- 
ing branches as we went. Sliding down declivities, scram- 
bling over fallen trees, dipping beneath low-hung branches, 
we finally came out upon the shore of the lake and found 
that we had struck the exact spot where the beaver-dam 
was located. 

It was only a short distance from camp and it had not 
taken us long to make it, but when we turned back we 
warmly welcomed the sight of our blazed trail, for all else 
was strange and unfamiliar. Going there had been 
glimpses of the water now and then to guide us, returning 
we had no landmarks. Even my sense of direction, usually 
to be relied on and upon which I had been tempted to de- 
pend solely, seemed to play me false when we reached a 
place where our blazing was lost sight of. The twilight 
stillness of the great forest enveloped us; there was no 
sign of our camp, no sound of voices. A few steps to our 
left the ground fell away in a steep precipice which, in 
going, we had passed unnoticed and which, for the mo- 
ment, seemed to obstruct our way. Then turning to the 
right we saw a streak of light through the trees that looked, 
at first, like water where we felt sure no water could be 
if we were on the right path; but we soon recognized this 
as smoke kept in a low cloud by the trees — the smoke of 
our camp-fire. That was our beacon, and we were soon 
on the trail again and back in camp. This is not told 



Trailing . 15 

as an adventure, but to illustrate the fact tliat without a 
well-blazed trail it is easier to become lost in a strange 
forest than to find one's way. 

You may strike the trail with the one object in view of 
reaching your destination as quickly as possible. This will 
help you to become agile and sure-footed, to cover long dis- 
tances in a short time, but it will not allow of much obser- 
vation until your mind has become alert and your eyes 
trained to see quickly the things of the forests and plains, 
and to read their signs correctly. Unless there is neces- 
sity for haste, it is better to take more time and look about 
you as you go. . To hurry over the trail is to lose much 
that is of interest and to pass by unseeingly things of 
great beauty. When you are new to the trail and must 
hurry, you are intent only on what is just before you — 
usually the feet of your guide — or if you raise your eyes 
to glance ahead, you notice objects simply as things to be 
reached and passed as quickly as possible. Unhurried 
trailing will repay you by showing you what the world of 
the wild contains. 

Walking slowly you can realize the solemn stillness of 
the forest, can take in the effect of the gray light which 
enfolds all things like a veil of mystery. You can stop 
to examine the tiny-leafed, creeping vines that cover the 
ground like moss and the structure of the soft mosses 
with fronds like ferns. You can catch the jewel-like gleam 
of the wood flowers. You can breathe deeply and rejoice 
in the perfume of the balsam and pine. You can rest at 
intervals and wait quietly for evidences of the animal life 
that you know is lurking, unseen, all around you; and you 
can begin to perceive the protecting spirit of the wild that 
hovers over all. 

To walk securely, as the woodsmen walk, without trip- 
ping, stumbling, or slipping, use the woodsmen's method 
of planting the entire foot on the ground, with toes straight 



16 On the Trail 

ahead, not turned out. If you put your heel down first, 
while crossing on a slippery log as in ordinary walking, 
the natural result will be a fall. With your entire foot 
as a base upon which to rest, the body is more easily 
balanced and the foot less likely to slip. When people 
slip and fall on the ice, it is because the edge of the heel 
strikes the ice first and slides. The whole foot on the ice 
would not slip in the same way, and very often not at all. 
Trailing does not consist merely in walking along a path 
or in making one for yourself. It has a larger meaning 
than that and embraces various lines of outdoor life, while 
it always presupposes movement of some kind. In one 
sense going on the trail means going on the hunt. You 
may go on the trail for birds, for animals, for insects, plants, 
or flowers. You may trail a party of friends ahead of you, 
or follow a deer to its drinking-place ; and in all these 
cases you must look for the signs of that which you seek. 

Footprints or Tracks 

In trailing animals look for footprints in soft earth, 
sand, or snow. The hind foot of the muskrat will leave 
a print in the mud like that of a little hand, and with it 
will be the fore-foot print, showing but four short fingers, 
and generally the streaks where the hard tail drags be- 
hind. Fig. 4 shows what these look like. If you are fa- 
miliar with the dog track you will know something about 
the footprints of the fox, wolf, and coyote, for they are 
much alike. Fig. 9 gives a clean track of the fox, but often 
there is the imprint of hairs between and around the toes. 
A wolf track is larger and is like Fig. 8. The footprint of 
a deer shows the cloven hoof, with a difference between 
the buck's and the doe's. The doe's toes are pointed and, 
when not spread, the track is almost heart-shaped (Fig. 7), 
while the buck has blunter, more rounded toes, like Fig. 




Footprints of animals. 



18 On the Trail 

lo. The two round lobes are at the back of the foot, 
the other end points in the direction the deer has taken. 
Sometimes you will find deer tracks with the toes spread 
wide apart. That means the animal has been running. 
All animals' toes spread more or less when they run. A 
bear track is like Fig. ii, but a large bear often leaves 
other evidences of his presence than his footprints. He 
will frequently turn a big log over or tear one open in his 
search for ants. He will stand on his hind legs and gnaw 
a hole in a dead tree or tall stump, and a bee-tree will 
bear the marks of his climbing on its trunk. It is inter- 
esting to find a tree with the scars of bruin's feet, made 
prominent by small knobs where his claws have sunk 
into the bark. Each scar swells and stands out like one 
of his toes. When you see bark scraped off the trees some 
distance from the ground, you may be sure that a horned 
animal has passed that way. Where the trees are not far 
apart a wide-horned animal, like the bull moose, scrapes 
the bark with his antlers as he passes. 

The cat-like lynx leaves a cat-like track (Fig. 6), which 
shows no print of the claws, and the mink's track is like 
Fig. 2. Rabbits' tracks are two large oblongs, then two 
almost round marks. The oblongs are the print of the 
large hind feet, which, with the peculiar gait of the rabbit, 
always come first. The large, hind-feet tracks point the 
direction the animal has taken. Fig. i is the track of the 
caribou, and shows the print of the dew-claws, which are 
the two little toes up high at the back of the foot. It is 
when the earth is eoft and the foot sinks in deeply that 
the dew-claws leave a print, or perhaps when the foot 
spreads wide in running. 

Fig. 3 is the print of the foot of a red squirrel. Fig. 5 
is the fisher's track, and Fig. 12 is that of a sheep. Pig 
tracks are much like those of sheep, but wider. When 
you have learned to recognize the varying freshness of 




IT^ 



Foot-prints of animals. 



jOvjoj^ 13 



20 On the Trail 

tracks you will know how far ahead the animal probably 
is. Other tracks you will learn as you become more 
familiar with the animals, and you will also be able to 
identify the tracks of the wild birds. 



CHAPTER II 

WOODCRAFT 

Trees. Practical Use of Compass. Direction of Wind. Star 
Guiding. What to Do When Lost in the Woods. How 
to Chop Wood. How to Fell Trees 

Trees 

While on the trail you will find a knowledge of trees 
most useful, and you should be able to recognize different 
species by their manner of growth, their bark and foliage. 

Balsam-Fir 

One of the most important trees for the trailer to know 
is the balsam-fir, for of this the best of outdoor beds are 
made. In shape the tree is like our Christmas-trees — in 
fact, many Christmas-trees are balsam-fir. 

The sweet, aromatic perfume of the balsam needles is 
a great aid in identifying it. The branches are flat and 
the needles appear to grow from the sides of the stem. 
The little twist at the base of the needle causes it to seem 
to grow merely in the straight, outstanding row on each 
side of the stem; look closely and you will see the twist. 

The needles are flat and short, hardly one inch in 
length; they are grooved along the top and the ends are 
decidedly blunt; in color they are dark bluish-green on 
the upper side and silvery-white underneath. The bark 
is gray, and you will find little gummy blisters on the 
tree-trunk. From these the healing Canada balsam is 

21 



%% On the Trail 

obtained. The short cones, often not over two inches in 
length, the longest seldom more than four inches, stand 
erect on top of the small branches, and when young are 
of a purplish color. 

From Maine to Minnesota the balsam-fir grows in damp 
woods and mountain bogs, and you will find it southward 
along the Alleghany Mountains from Pennsylvania to 
North Carolina. 

Spruce 

The spruce, red, black, and white, differs in many re- 
spects from the balsam-fir: the needles are sharp-pointed, 
not blunt, and instead of being flat like the balsam-fir, 
they are four-sided and cover the branchlet on all sides, 
causing it to appear rounded or bushy and not flat. The 
spruce-gum sought by many is found in the seams of the 
bark, which, unlike the smooth balsam-fir, is scaly and 
of a brown color. Early spring is the time to look for 
spruce-gum. Spruce is a soft wood, splits readily and is 
good for the frames and ribs of boats, also for paddles and 
oars, and the bark makes a covering for temporary shelters. 

Hemlock 

This tree is good for thatching a lean-to when balsam- 
fir is not to be found, and its bark can be used in the 
way of shingles. 

The cones are small and hang down from the branches; 
they do not stand up alert like those of the balsam-fir, 
nor are they purple in color, being rather of a bright red- 
brown, and when very young, tan color. The wood is not 
easy to split — don't try it, or your hatchet will suffer in 
consequence and the pieces will be twisted as a usual thing. 
The southern variety, however, often splits straight. 




Hemlock. 




Pitch-pine and cone 



Sycamore leaf and fruit of sycamore 
(The buttonball.) 



Woodcraft ' 27 

Pine 

The pine-tree accommodates itself to almost any kind 
of soil, high, low, moist, or dry, often growing along the 
edge of the water. 

The gray pine is sometimes used for making the skel- 
eton of a canoe or other boats, and the white pine for the 
skin or covering of the skeleton boat; but for you the 
pine will probably be most useful in furnishing pine- 
knots, and its soft wood for kindling your outdoor fire. 

The trees mentioned abound in our northern forests. 
The birch in its different varieties is there also, but rarely 
ventures into the densest woods, preferring to remain near 
and on its outskirts. However, none of these trees confine 
themselves strictly to one locality. 

Oaks, hickory, chestnut, maples, and sycamore are 
among the useful woods for campers. 

Learn the quality and nature of the different trees. 
Each variety is distinct from the others: some woods 
are easy to split, such as spruce, chestnut, balsam-fir, 
etc.; some very strong, as locust, oak, hickory, sugar- 
maple, etc.; then there are the hard and soft woods 
mentioned in fire-making. 

When you once understand the characteristics of the 
different woods, and their special qualifications, becoming 
familiar with only two or three varieties at a time, the 
trees will be able to help you according to their special 
powers. You would not go to a musician to have a por- 
trait painted, for while the musician might give you 
wonderful music he would be helpless as far as painting 
a picture was concerned, and so it is with trees. They 
cannot all give the same thing; if you want soft wood, 
it is wasting your time to go to hardwood trees; they 
cannot give you what they do not possess. Know the 
possibilities of trees and they will not fail you. 



28 On the Trail 



How to Chop Wood 

Trailing and camping both mean wood-chopping to 
some extent for shelters, fires, etc., and the girl of to-day- 
should understand, as did the girls of our pioneer families, 
how to handle properly a hatchet, or in this case we will 
make it a belt axe. There is a small hatchet modelled 
after the Daniel Boone tomahawk, generally known as 
the "camp axe." It is thicker, narrower, and has a 
sharper edge than an ordinary hatchet. It comes of a 
size to wear on the belt and must be securely protected 
by a well-fitted strong leather sheath; otherwise it will 
endanger not only the life of the girl who carries it, but 
also the lives of her companions. With the camp axe 
(hatchet) you can cut down small trees, chop firewood, 
blaze trees, drive down pegs or stakes, and chop kindling- 
wood. Every time you want to use the hatchet take the 
precaution to examine it thoroughly and reassure your- 
self that the tool is in good condition and that the head 
is on firm and tight; be positive of this. 

Great caution must be taken when chopping kindling- 
wood, as often serious accidents occur through ignorance 
or carelessness. Do not raise one end of a stick up on a 
log with the other end down on the ground and then 
strike the centre of the stick a sharp blow with the sharp 
edge of your hatchet; the stick will break, but one end 
usually flies up with considerable force and very often 
strikes the eye of the worker, ruining the sight forever. 
Take the blunt end of your hatchet and do not give a 
very hard blow on the stick you wish to break; exert 
only force sufficient to break it partially, merely enough 
to enable you to finish the work with your hands and 
possibly one knee. It may require a little more time, but 
your eyes -^ill be unharmed, which makes it worth while. 




Stand on the log when you chop it. 



13 



M 




> . c 
I I . 15 



16 



V, 






For safety. 



The stump will be like this on 
top when the tree is down. 



How to use the axe. 



30 On the Trail 

Often children use a heavy stone to break kindling-wood, 
with no disastrous results that I know of. The heavy stone 
does not seem to cause the wood to fly upward. 

How to Chop Logs 

Practise on small, slender logs, chopping them in short 
lengths until you understand something of the woodsman's 
art of "logging up a tree"; then and not until then should 
you attempt to cut heavier wood. 

If you are sure-footed and absolutely certain that you 
can stand firmly on the log without teetering or swaying 
when leaning over, do so. You can then chop one side of 
the log half-way through and turn around and chop the 
other side until the second notch or "kerf" is cut through 
to the first one on the opposite side, and the two pieces 
fall apart. While working stand on the log with feet wide 
apart and chop the side of the log (not the top) on the 
space in front between your feet. Make your first chip 
quite long, and have it equal in length the diameter of 
the log. If the chip is short, the opening of the kerf will 
be narrow and your hatchet will become wedged, obliging 
you to double your labor by enlarging the kerf. Greater 
progress will be made by chopping diagonally across the 
grain of the wood, and the work will be easier. It is dif- 
ficult to cut squarely against the grain and this is always 
avoided when possible. After you have cut the first chip 
in logging up a tree, chop on the base of the chip, swing- 
ing your hatchet from the opposite direction, and the chip 
will fall to the ground. 

Having successfully chopped off one piece of the log, 
it will be a simple matter to cut off more. Chop slowly, 
easily, and surely. Don't be in a hurry and exhaust your- 
self; only a novice overexerts and tries to make a deep 
cut with the hatchet. 



Woodcraft , 31 

Be careful of the blade of your hatchet; keep it free 
from the ground when chopping, to avoid striking snags, 
stones, or other things liable to nick or dull the edge. 

How to Fell a Tree 

Content yourself with chopping down only slender trees, 
mere saplings, at first, and as you acquire skill, slightly 
heavier trees can be felled. Begin in the right way with 
your very first efforts and follow the woodsman's method. 

Having selected the tree you desire to cut down, de- 
termine in which direction you want it to fall and mark 
that side, but first make sure that when falling, the tree 
will not lodge in another one near by or drop on one of 
the camp shelters. See that the way is free of hindrance 
before cutting the tree, also clear the way for the swing 
of your extended hatchet. If there are obstacles, such as 
vines, bushes, limbs of other trees, or rocks, which your 
hatchet might strike as you raise and lower it while at 
work, clear them all away, making a generous open space 
on all sides, overhead, on the right and left side, and below 
the swing of the hatchet. Take no chance of having an 
accident, as would occur should the hatchet become en- 
tangled or broken. 

You may have noticed that the top surface of most 
stumps has a splintered ridge across its centre, and on 
one side of the ridge the wood is lower than on the other; 
this is because of the manner in which a woodsman fells 
a tree. If he wants the tree to fall toward the west he 
marks the west side of the trunk; then he marks the top 
and bottom of the space he intends chopping out for the 
first kerf or notch (Fig. 13, A and B), making the length of 
space a trifle longer than one-half of the tree diameter. 
The kerf is chopped out by cutting first from the top 
A, then from the bottom B (Fig. 14). When the first kerf 



32 On the Trail 

is finished and cut half-way through the tree, space for 
the kerf on the opposite side of the tree is marked a few 
inches higher than the first one (Fig. 15, C and D) and then 
it also is cut (Fig. 16). 

After you have chopped the two kerfs in a tree, you 
will know when it is about to fall by the creaking and 
the slight movement of its top. Step to one side of the 
falling tree, never behind or in front of it; either of the 
last two ways would probably mean death: if in front, 
the tree would fall on you, and if at the back, you would 
probably be terribly injured if not killed, as trees often 
kick backward with tremendous force as they go down; 
so be on your guard, keep cool, and deliberately step to 
the side of the tree and watch it fall. 

Choose a quiet day, when there is no wind, for tree-fell- 
ing. You cannot control the wind, and it may control 
your tree. 

Never allow your hatchet to lie on the ground, a menace 
to every one at camp, but have a particular log or stump 
and always strike the blade in this wood. Leave your 
hatchet there, where it will not be injured, can do no harm, 
and you will always know where to find it (Fig. 17). 

Etiquette of the Wild 

Translated this means "hands 0^." The unwritten 
law of the woods is that personal property cached in trees, 
underbrush, beneath stones, or hidden underground must 
never be taken, borrowed, used, or molested. 

Canoes and oars will often be discovered left by owners, 
Sometimes fastened at the water's edge, again suspended 
from trees, and the temptation to borrow may be strong, 
but remember such an act would be dishonorable and 
against the rules that govern the outdoor world. 

Provisions, tools, or other articles found in the forests 



Woodcraft ' 33 

should be respected and allowed to remain where they 
are. It is customary for campers to cache their belong- 
ings with the assurance that forest etiquette will be held 
inviolate and their goods remain unmolested. 

Every one has the privilege of examining and enjoying 
the beauties of mosses, berries, and wild flowers, but do 
not take these treasures from their homes to die and be 
thrown aside. Love them well enough to let them stay 
where they are for others also to enjoy, unless you need 
specimens for some important special study. 

A man who had always lived in the Adirondack forests, 
and at present is proprietor of an Adirondack hotel, 
recently reforested many acres of his wooded wild lands 
by planting through the forests little young trees, some 
not over one foot high, and his indignation was great 
when he discovered that many of his guests when off on 
tramps returned laden with these baby trees, which were 
easily pulled up by the roots because so lately planted. 

Finding Your Way by Natural Signs and the Compass 

An important phase of woodcraft is the ability to find 
your way in the wilderness by means of natural signs as 
well as the compass. If, however, you do not know at 
what point of the compass from you the camp lies, the 
signs can be of no avail. Having this knowledge, the 
signs will be invaluable. 

Get your bearings before leaving camp. Do not depend 
upon any member of the party, but know for your- 
self. 

If you have a map giving the topography of land sur- 
rounding the camping-grounds, consult it. Burn into your 
memory the direction from camp of outlying landmarks, 
those near and those as far off as you can see in all di- 
rections. The morning you leave camp, ascertain the 



34 On the Trail 

direction of the wind and notice particularly the sun and 
shadows. If it is early morning, face the sun and you 
will be looking toward the east. Stretch out both arms 
at your sides and point with your index-fingers; your 
right finger will point to the south, your left to the north, 
and your back will be toward the west. What landmarks 
do you see east of the camp? South? North? West? 
And from what point of the compass does the wind blow ? 
If it comes from the west and you trail eastward, the 
wind will strike your back going away from camp and 
should strike your face returning, provided its direction 
does not change. Again, if you go east, your camp will 
lie west of you, and your homeward path must be west- 
ward. Consult your compass and know exactly which 
direction you take when leaving camp, and blaze your 
trail as you go, looking backward frequently to see how 
landmarks should appear as you face them returning. 

With all these friends to guide you, first, the map; 
second, sun; third, shadows; fourth, wind; fifth, compass; 
sixth, your bent-twig blazing, there will be little, if any, 
danger of being lost. But you must constantly keep on 
the alert and refer frequently to these guides, especially 
when deflecting from the course first taken after leaving 
camp. At every turning, stop and take your bearings 
anew; you cannot be too careful. 

These signs are for daylight; at night the North Star 
will be your guide. 

Sunlight and Shadow 

Bearing in mind that the sun rises in the east and 
sets in the west, it will be comparatively easy to keep 
your right course by consulting the sun. A fair idea may 
also be gained of the time of day by the length of shadows, 
if you remember that shadows are long in the morning 



Woodcraft - 35 

and continue to grow shorter until midday, when they 
again begin to lengthen, growing longer and longer until 
night. 

To find the direction of the sun on a cloudy day, hold 
a flat splinter or your knife blade vertically, so that it is 
absolutely straight up and down. Place the point of the 
blade on your thumb-nail, watch-case, or other glossy 
surface; then turn the knife or splinter around until the 
full shadow of the flat of blade or splinter falls on the 
bright surface, telling the location of the sun. 

An open spot where the sun can cast a clear shadow, 
and an hour when the sun is not immediately overhead, 
will give best results. 

Wind . 

The wind generally blows in the same direction all 
day, and if you learn to understand its ways, the wind 
will help you keep the right trail. Make a practise of 
testing the direction of the wind every morning. Notice 
the leaves on bush and tree, in what direction they move. 
Place a few bits of paper on your open hand and watch 
in which way the wind carries them; if there is no paper, 
try the test with dry leaves, grass, or anything light and 
easily carried by the breeze. Smoke will also show the 
direction of the wind. 

When the wind is very faint, put your finger in your 
mouth, wet it on all sides, and hold it up; the side on 
which the wind blows will feel cool and tell from what 
quarter the wind comes: if on the east side of your finger, 
the wind blows from the east, and so on. Keep testing 
the direction of the wind as you trail, and if at any time 
it cools a different side of the finger, you will know that 
you are not walking in the same direction as when you 
left camp and must turn until the wet finger tells you 



36 On the Trail 

which way to go. The wind is a good guide so long as 
it keeps blowing in the same direction as when you left 
camp. 

Use of Compass 

Should you be on the trail and sudden storm-clouds ap- 
pear, the sun cannot help you find your way; the shadows 
have gone. Moss on tree-trunks is not an infallible guide 
and you must turn to the compass to show the way, but 
unless you understand its language you will not know 
what it is telling you. Learn the language before going 
to camp; it is not difficult. 

Hold the compass out in a level position directly in 
front of you; be sure it is level; then decide to go north. 
Consult the compass and ascertain in which direction the 
north lies. The compass needle points directly north 
with the north end of the needle; this end is usually black, 
sometimes pearl. Let your eye follow straight along the 
line pointed out by the needle; as you look ahead select 
a landmark — tree, rock, pond, or whatever may lie in that 
direction. Choose an object quite a distance off on the 
imaginary line, go directly toward it, and when inter- 
vening objects obscure the landmark, refer to your com- 
pass. If you have turned from the pathway north, face 
around and readjust your steps in the right direction. 
Do not let over two minutes pass without making sure by 
the compass that you are going on the right path, going 
directly north. 

Practise using the compass for a guide until you under- 
stand it; have faith in it and you may fearlessly trust to 
its guidance. Try going according to various points of 
the compass: suppose you wish to go southeast, the com- 
pass tells you this as plainly as the north; try it. Natu- 
rally, if you go to the southeast away from camp, return- 



%''^ \ ^ % ^ 







Mariner's Compass. 



Common Compass. 



Big Dipper. 




Little Dipper. 




XVhV" 



The compass and the North Star, 



38 On the Trail 

ing will be in exactly the opposite direction, and coming 
back to camp you must walk northwest. After learning 
to go in a straight line, guided entirely by the compass, 
try a zigzag path. A group of girls will find it good sport 
to practise trailing with the compass, and they will at the 
same time learn how to avoid being lost and how to help 
others find their way. It is possible to 

Make a Compass of Your Watch 

Besides keeping you company with its friendly near- 
ness, its ticking and its ready answers to your questions 
regarding the time, a watch in the woods and fields has 
another use, for it can be used as a compass. It will 
show just where the south is, then by turning your back 
on the south you face the north, and on your right is the 
east and on your left the west. These are the rules: 

With your watch in a horizontal position point the 
hour-hand to the sun, and if before noon, half-way be- 
tween the hour hand and 12 is due south. If it is after- 
noon calculate the opposite way. For instance, if at 8 
A. M. you point the hour-hand to the sun, 10 will point 
to the south, for that is half-way between 8 and 12. If 
at 2 p. M. you point the hour-hand to the sun, look back 
to 12, and half the distance will be at i, therefore i points 
to the south. 

An easy way to get the direction of the sun without 
looking directly at it is by means of the shadow of a 
straight, slender stick or grass stem thrown on the hori- 
zontal face of your watch. Hold the stick upright with 
the lower end touching the watch at the point of the hour- 
hand, then turn the watch until the shadow of the stick 
falls along the hour-hand. This will point the_hand un- 
deviatingly toward the sun. 



Woodcraft 39 



Mountain Climbing 

The campers should go together to climb the moun- 
tain, never one girl alone. 

Before starting, find a strong stick to use as a staff; 
stow away some luncheon in one of your pockets; see 
that your camera is in perfect order, ready to use at a 
moment's notice; that your water-proof match-box is in 
your pocket filled with safety matches, your pocket-knife 
safe with you, also watch and compass, and that the tin 
cup is on your belt. Your whistle being always hung 
around your neck will, of course, be there as usual. 

When you are ready, stand still and look about you 
once more to make sure of your bearings; close your eyes 
and tell yourself exactly what you have seen. After 
leaving camp and arriving at the foot of the mountain, 
take your bearings anew; then look up ahead and select 
a certain spot which you wish to reach on the upward 
trail. Having this definite object in view will help in 
making better progress and save your walking around 
in a circle, which is always the tendency when in a. strange 
place and intervening trees or elevations obstruct the 
view, or when not sure of the way and trying to find it. 

Begin blazing the trail at your first step up the moun- 
tain side. Even though there may be a trail already, 
you cannot be sure that it will continue; it is much safer 
to depend upon your own blazing. 

Often in trailing along the mountain you will find 
huge rocks and steep depressions, or small lakes which 
you cannot cross over but must go around, and in so doing 
change your direction, perhaps strike off at an angle. Be- 
fore making the detour, search out some large landmark, 
readily recognized after reaching the other side of the 
obstruction, a tall, peculiarly shaped tree or other natural 



40 On the Trail 

feature. Now is the time to try earnestly to keep the 
landmark in sight as long as possible and to be able to 
recognize it when you see it again. Watch your compass 
and the sun that you may continue in the right direction 
after circling the obstruction. Go slow in climbing, take 
your time and don't get out of breath. 

On many mountains the possibility of unexpected fogs 
exists, and safety requires that the party be linked to- 
gether with a soft rope; the same precaution should be 
taken when the trail is very rough, steep, and rocky. The 
camper at the head of the line should tie the rope in a 
bow-line around her waist, with knot on left side, and 
eight or ten feet from her the next girl should link herself 
to the rope in the same manner; then another girl, and 
another, until the entire party is on the rope. 

The leader starts on the trail and the others, holding 
fast to their staffs, carefully follow, each one cautious to 
keep the rope stretching out in front of her rather taut; 
then if one girl stumbles the others brace themselves and 
keep her from falling. 

When descending the mountain, be careful to get a firm 
footing. Instead of facing the trail, it is safer to turn 
sideways, so that you can place the entire foot down and 
not risk the toes only, or the heels. Often coming down 
either a steep hill or a mountain is more difficult than 
going up. 

Lost in the Woods 

It is not at all probable that you will lose your way 
while on the trail, but if you should find yourself lost in 
the woods or in the open, the first thing to do is to remem- 
ber that a brave girl does not get into a panic and so rob 
herself of judgment and the power to think clearly and 
act quickly. Beheve firmly that you are safe, then sit 



Woodcraft - 41 

down quietly and think out a plan of finding your way. 
Try to remember from which direction you have come 
and to recall landmarks. If you cannot do this, do not 
be frightened and do not allow any thought of possible 
harm to get a foothold in your mind. If there is a hill 
near, from which you can see any distance, climb that 
and get an outlook. You may be able to see the smoke 
of your camp-fire, which, after all, cannot be so far away. 
You may find a landmark that you do remember. If 
you see nothing which you can recognize, make a signal 
flag of your handkerchief and put it up high, as high as 
you can. Your friends will be looking for that. Then 
give the lost signal, one long blast with your whistle, 
and after a short pause follow with two more blasts in 
quick succession. If you have no whistle shout, loud and 
long, then wait a while, keeping eyes and ears open to see 
and hear answering signals. If there is none, again shout 
the lost signal and continue the calls every little while 
for quite a time. Another call for help is the ascending 
smoke of three fires. This, of course, is for daylight. 
Build your fires some distance apart, twenty-five feet or 
more, that the smoke from each may be clearly seen alone, 
not mingled with the rest. Aim to create smoke rather 
than flame; a slender column of smoke can be seen a 
long distance, therefore the fire need not be large. Choose 
for your fires as clear a space and as high an elevation as 
can be found, and in the relief and excitement of rescue 
do not forget to extinguish every spark before leaving the 
ground. 

If you decide to keep moving, blaze your trail as you 
go, so that it may be followed and also that you may 
know if you cross it again yourself. You can blaze the 
trail by breaking or bending small branches on trees and 
bushes, or by small strips torn from your handkerchief 
and tied conspicuously on twigs. If you are where there 



42 On the Trail 

are no trees or undergrowth, build small piles of stones 
or little hills of earth at intervals to mark your trail. 

If night overtakes you, look for the North Star. That 
will help if you know at what point of the compass your 
camp lies, and if you remember whether your course in 
leaving camp was to the north, south, east, or west, you 
can calculate pretty accurately whether the camp is to 
the north, south, east, or west of you. 

In case the night must be spent where you are, go 
about making a shelter, prepare as comfortable a bed as 
possible, and do not be afraid. You will probably be 
found before morning, and you must be found in good 
physical condition. 

If you can kindle a fire, do it; that will help to guide 
your friends and will ward off wild creatures that might 
startle you. Keep your fire going all night and take 
care that it does not spread. 

It is better to remain quietly in one spot all night than 
to wander about in the dark and perhaps stumble upon 
dangerous places. If, when you find the points of the 
compass by the North Star, you mark them plainly on a 
stone or fallen log, they will be a ready guide for you as 
soon as daylight breaks. 

The last word on this subject is: Do not be afraid. 

To Find Your Way by the North Star 

At night you will have the same reliable guide that 
has ever been the mariner's friend, and if you do not 
know this star guide, lose no time in finding it. 
^ Polaris or pole-star is known generally as North Star, 
and this star is most important to the outdoor girl. At 
all times the North Star marks the north, its position 
never changes, and seeing that star and knowing it, you 
will always know the points of the compass. Face the 



Woodcraft - 43 

North Star and you face the north. At your right hand 
is the east, at your left hand is the west, and at your 
back is the south. 

The North Star does not look very important because 
it is not very bright or very large, and were it not for the 
help of the Big Dipper, which every one knows, the North 
Star would not be easy to find. The diagram given on page 
37 shows the relative position of the stars and will help you 
to find the North Star. The two stars forming the front 
side of the bowl of the Great Dipper point almost in a 
direct line to the North Star, which is the last one in the 
handle of the Little Dipper, or the tail of the Little Bear, 
which means the same thing. 



CHAPTER III 




CAMPING 




Camp Sites. Water. Wood. Tents. Shelters. 
Fires. Cooking. Safety and Protection. 
Camp Spirit 


Lean-Tos. 
Sanitation. 


Information 





Whether your camp is to be for one day, one week, or 
a longer period of time, the first question to be decided is: 
" Where shall we go? " If you know of no suitable spot, 
inquire of friends, and even if they have not personally 
enjoyed the delights of camping and sleeping in the 
open, one or more of them will probably know of some 
acquaintance who will be glad to give the information. 
Write to the various newspapers, magazines, railroads, and 
outdoor societies for suggestions. The Geological Survey 
of the United States at Washington, D. C, will furnish 
maps giving location and extent of forests and water- 
ways, also location and character of roads; you can ob- 
tain the maps for almost any part of every State. Most 
public automobile houses supply maps of any desired 
region. Send letters of inquiry to these sources of in- 
formation, and in this way you will probably learn of 
many " just the right place " localities. Select a number 
of desirable addresses, investigate them, and make your 
own choice of location, remembering that the first three 
essentials for a camp are good ground, water, and wood; 
the rest is easy, for these three form the foundation for 
camping. 

44 



Camping ' 45 



Location 

Wherever you go, choose a dry spot, preferably in an 
open space near wooded land. Avoid hollows where the 
water will run into your shelters in wet weather; let your 
camp be so located that in case of rain the water will 
drain down away from it. Remember this or you may 
find your camp afloat upon a temporary lake or swamp 
should a storm arise. 

Water 

Pure drinking water you must have, it is of vital im- 
portance, so be sure to pitch your camp within near walk- 
ing distance of a good spring, a securely covered well, or 
other supply of pure water. 

Henry David Thoreau's method of obtaining clear water 
from a pond whose surface was covered with leaves, etc., 
was to push his pail, without tipping it in the least, straight 
down under the water until the top edge was below the 
surface several inches, then quickly lift it out; in doing 
this the overflow would carry off all leaves and twigs, 
leaving the remaining water in the pail clear and good. 
But you must first be sure that the pond contains pure 
water under the floating debris. 

Always be cautious about drinking water from rivers, 
streams, ponds, and lakes though they may appear ever 
so clear and tempting, for the purity is by no means as- 
sured, and to drink from these sources may cause serious 
illness. Unless you are absolutely sure that water is free 
from impurities, boil it; then it will be safe to use for 
drinking and cooking. 

Next in importance to good water is good fire-wood and 
woodsy material for shelters and beds. Bear this in mind 
when deciding upon the site for your camp. 



46 On the Trail 



Companions 

Because your companions can make or mar the hap- 
piness in camp, it is safer to have in your party only those 
girls who will take kindly to the camp spirit of friendly 
helpfulness, those always ready to laugh and treat discom- 
forts as jokes. This means that though fun-loving and 
full of buoyancy and life, each girl will willingly do her 
part and assume her share of responsibilities. 

Safeguarding 

You should also count among your companions two 
or more camp directors — possibly mothers of the girls, 
teachers, or older friends of whom the parents approve 
— who will enter heartily into all phases of outdoor life 
and while really being one with you in sport and work, 
will at the same time keep careful oversight and assure 
protection. 

Avoid localities where there is a possibility of tramps 
or undesirable characters of any description, and do not 
wander from camp alone or unaccompanied by one of 
the directors. If your camp is in the forest it will be the 
part of wisdom to secure also a reliable guide who knows 
the forest ways. 

The Start 

The day before you leave for your camping-ground, 
have everything in readiness that there may be no delay 
when it is time to go. Be prompt, for you want to play 
fair and not keep the other girls waiting, causing them to 
lose valuable time. 

The stimulating exhilaration which comes with trailing 
through the forests to camp, the keen delight of adven- 
ture, the charm of the wilderness, the freedom and won- 



Camping ' 47 

der of living in the woods, all make for the health and 
happiness of the girl camper, and once experienced, ever 
after with the advent of spring comes the call of the un- 
trammelled life in the big outdoors. 

The One-Day Camp 

Even a one-day camp fills the hours with more genuine 
lasting enjoyment than girls can find in other ways; there 
is a charm about it which clings in your memory, making 
a joy, later, of the mere thought and telling of the event. 

That every moment of the day may be filled full of 
enjoyment for all, have a good programme, some definite, 
well-thought-out plan of activities and sports previously 
prepared, and if possible let every girl know beforehand 
just what she is to do when all arrive at camp. 

With an older person in charge, the party could be 
divided, according to its size, into different groups, and 
as soon as the grounds are reached the groups should 
begin the fun of preparing for the camp dinner. 

If the party consists of eight, two can gather fire-wood, 
two build the fireplace, two unpack the outfits, placing 
the provisions and cooking utensils in order conveniently 
near the fire, and two can bring the drinking water and 
cooking water. 

Provisions and cooking utensils should be divided into 
as many packs as there are campers, and every camper 
carry a pack. Count in the outfit for each one a tin cup, 
preferably with open handle for wearing over belt. 

In the one-day camp very few cooking utensils are 
needed; they may consist of two tin pails, one for drinking 
water, the other for boiling water, one coffee-pot for 
cocoa, one frying-pan for flapjacks or eggs, one large 
kitchen knife for general use, and one large spoon for 
stirring batter and cocoa. 



48 On the Trail 



Camp Dinner 

Counting on a keen outdoor appetite for wholesome 
substantials, the provision list includes only plain fare, 
such as : Lamb chops, or thinly sliced bacon packed in oil- 
paper. Dry cocoa to which sugar has been added, carried 
in can or stout paper bag. One can of condensed milk, 
unsweetened, to be diluted with water according to direc- 
tions on can. Butter in baking-powder can. Dry flour 
mixed with salt and baking-powder in required propor- 
tions for flapjacks, packed in strong paper bag and carried 
in one of the tin pails. Bread in loaf wrapped in wax- 
paper. Potatoes washed and dried ready to cook, packed 
in paper bag or carried in second tin pail. Pepper and 
salt each sealed in separate marked envelopes; when 
needed, perforate paper with big pin and use envelopes as 
shakers. One egg for batter, buried in the flour to prevent 
breaking, and one small can of creamy maple sugar, soft 
enough to spread on hot cakes, or a can of ordinary 
maple syrup. 

The Clean-up 

While resting after dinner is the time for story- telling; 
then, before taking part in sports of any kind, every 
particle of debris, even small bits of egg-shell and paper, 
should be gathered up and burned until not a vestige re- 
mains. To be ''good sports," thought must be taken for 
the next comers and the camping-ground left in perfect 
order, absolutely free from litter or debris of any kind. 

When breaking camp be sure to soak the fire with water 
again and again. It is criminal to leave any coals or even 
a spark of the fire smouldering. 

Be positive that tht fire is out. 



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50 On the Trail 



Shelters and Tents. Lean-To 

For a fixed camp of longer or shorter duration your 
home will be under the shelter of boughs, logs, or canvas. 
The home of green boughs is considered by many the 
ideal of camp shelters. This you can make for yourself. 
It is a simple little two-sided, slanting roof and back and 
open-front shed, made of the material of the woods and 
generally known as a lean-to, sometimes as Baker tent 
when of canvas. 

There are three ways of erecting the front framework. 

The first is to find two trees standing about seven feet 
apart with convenient branches down low enough to sup- 
port the horizontal top cross pole when laid in the crotches. 
Lacking the proper trees, the second method is to get two 
strong, straight, forked poles of green wood and drive 
them down into the ground deep enough to make them 
stand firm and upright by themselves the required dis- 
tance apart. The third way is to reinforce the uprights 
by shorter forked stakes driven firmly into the ground 
and braced against the uprights, but this is not often 
necessary. 

Having your uprights in place, extending above ground 
five feet or more, lay a top pole across, fitting its ends into 
the forked tops of the uprights. Against this top pole 
rest five or six slender poles at regular distances apart, 
one end of each against the top pole and the other end 
on the ground slanting outward and backward sufl&ciently 
to give a good slope and allow sleeping space beneath. 
At right angles to the slanting poles, lay across them 
other poles, using the natural pegs or stumps left on the 
slanting poles by lopped-off branches, as braces to hold 
the cross poles in place (Fig. i8). 

When building the frame be sure to place the slanting 




Outdoor shelters. 



52 On the Trail 

poles so that the Httle stumps left on them will turn up 
and not down, that they may hold the cross poles. Try 
to have spaces between cross poles as regular as possible. 
A log may be rolled up against the ground ends of the 
slanting poles to prevent their slipping, though this is 
rarely necessary, for they stand firm as a rule. 

You can cover the frame with bark and then thatch 
it, which will render the shelter better able to withstand 
a storm, or you may omit the bark, using only the thatch 
as a covering. Put on very thick, this should make the 
lean-to rain-proof. 

With small tips of branches from trees, preferably 
balsam, hemlock, or other evergreens, begin thatching 
your shelter. Commence at the bottom of the lean-to, 
and hook on the thatch branches close together all the 
way across the lowest cross pole, using the stumps of 
these thatch branches as hooks to hold the thatch in 
place on the cross pole (Fig. 19). Overlap the lower 
thatches as you work along the next higher cross pole, 
like shingles on a house, and continue in this way, over- 
lapping each succeeding cross pole with an upper row of 
thatch until the top is reached. Fill in the sides thick 
with branches, boughs, or even small, thick trees. 

The lean-to frame can be covered with your poncho 
in case of necessity, but boughs are much better. 

Permanent Camp. Lean-To. Open Camp 

Another kind of lean-to intended for a permanent 
camp is in general use throughout the Adirondacks. 
It is built of substantial good-sized logs put together 
log-cabin fashion, with open front, slanting roof, and low 
back (Fig. 20). This shelter has usually a board floor 
raised a few inches above the ground and covered thick, 
at least a foot deep, with balsam. Overspread with 



54 On the Trail 

blankets, the soft floor forms a comfortable bed. A log 
across the front of the floor keeps the balsam in place and 
forms a seat for the campers in the evenings when gathered 
for a social time before the fire. The roof of the log lean- 
to can be either of boards or well-thatched poles which 
have first been overlaid with bark. 

One of the most comfortable and delightful of real 
forest camps which I have ever been in, was a permanent 
camp in the Adirondacks owned and run by one of the 
best of Adirondack guides. The camp consisted of several 
shelters and two big permanent fireplaces. 

Over the ground space for the large tent outlined with 
logs w^as a strong substantial rustic frame, built of ma- 
terial at hand in the forest and intended to last many 
seasons (Fig. 21). The shelter boasted of two springy, 
woodsy beds, made of slender logs laid crosswise and 
raised some inches from the ground. These slender logs 
slanted down slightly from head to foot of the bed, and 
the edges of the bed were built high enough to hold the 
deep thick filling of balsam tips, so generously deep as 
to do away with all consciousness of the underlying slender- 
log foundation (Fig. 22). Each bed was wide enough for 
two girls and the shelter ample to accommodate com- 
fortably four campers. There could have been one more 
bed, when the tent would have sheltered six girls. 

In the late fall, the guide removed the water-proof tent 
covering and kept it in a safe, dry place until needed, 
lea\'ing the beds and bare tent frame standing. 

There was a smaller tent and also a lean-to in this 
camp. 

The dining-table, contrived of logs and boards, was 
sheltered by a square of canvas on a rustic frame (Fig. 23). 
The camp dishes of white enamel ware were kept in a 
wooden box, nailed to a close-by tree; in this box the 
guide had put shelves, resting them on wooden cleats. 



56 On the Trail 

The cupboard had a door that shut tight and fastened 
securely to keep out the little wild creatures of the woods. 
Pots, kettles, frying-pan, etc., hung on the stubs of a 
slender tree where branches and top had been lopped off 
(Fig. 24). The sealed foods were stowed away in a box 
cupboard, and canned goods were cached in a cave-like 
spot under a huge rock, with opening secured by stones. 

The walls of the substantial fireplace, fully two feet 
high, were of big stones, the centre filled in part-way with 
earth, and the cook-fire was made on top of the earth, so 
there was not the slightest danger of the fire spreading. 

The soft, warm, cheerful-colored camp blankets when 
not in use were stored carefully under cover of a water- 
proof tent-like storehouse, with the canvas sides dropped 
from the ridge-pole, both sides and flaps securely fastened 
and the entire storehouse made proof against intrusion. 

This camp was located near a lake in the mountain 
forest and its charm was indescribably delightful. 

Tents 

Tents in almost endless variety of shapes and sizes are 
manufactured and sold by camp-outfitters and sporting- 
goods shops. The tents range from small canoe-tents, 
accommodating one person only, to the large wall-tents 
for four or more people. When using tents, difficulties 
of transportation and extra weight can be overcome by 
having tent poles and pegs cut in the forest. 

If you purchase tents, full instructions for erection go 
with them. Write for illustrated catalogues to various 
outfitters and look the books over carefully before buying. 
Your choice will depend upon your party, length of stay, 
and location of camp. 

You may be able to secure a discarded army-tent that 
has never been used, is in good condition, and has been 



58 On the Trail 

condemned merely for some unimportant blemish. Such 
tents are very serviceable and can be purchased at Govern- 
ment auctions, or from dealers who themselves have bought 
them from the Government. 

A large square seven by seven feet, or more, of balloon 
silk, water-proof cloth, or even heavy unbleached sheeting, 
will be found most useful in camp. Sew strong tape 
strings at the four corners and at intervals along the 
sides for tying to shelters, etc. The water-proof cloth 
will serve as a drop-curtain in front of the lean-to during 
a hard storm, or as carpet cloth over ground of shelter, 
also as an extra shelter, either lean-to or tent style; any 
of the three materials can do duty as windbreak, fly 
to shelter, or dining canopy, and may be used in other 
ways. 

Camp-Beds 

To derive joy and strength from your outing it is of 
serious importance that you sleep well every night while 
at camp, and your camp-bed must be comfortable to 
insure a good night's rest. 

A bough-bed is one of the joys of the forest when it is 
well made, and to put it together properly will require 
about half an hour's time, but the delight of sleeping on 
a soft balsam bed perfumed with the pungent odors of 
the balsam will well repay for the time expended. 

Bough-Bed 

Tips of balsam broken off with your fingers about 
fourteen inches long make the best of beds, but hemlock, 
spruce, and other evergreens can be used; if they are not 
obtainable, the fan-like branches from other trees may 
take their place. Of these you will need a large quantity; 



60 On the Trail 

in order to have the bed springy and soft. Always place 
the outdoor bed with the head well under cover and foot 
toward the opening of shelter, or if without shelter, toward 
the fire. Make the bed by arranging the branches shingle- 
like in very thick overlapping rows, convex side up, directly 
on the ground with thick end of stems toward the foot. 
Push these ends into the ground so that the tips will be 
raised slantingly up from the earth; make the rows which 
will come under the hips extra thick and springy. Con- 
tinue placing the layers in this manner until the space 
for single or double bed, as the case may be, is covered 
with the first layer of your green mattress. Over it make 
another layer of branches, reversing the ends of these 
tips from those underneath by pushing the thick ends of 
branches of this top layer slantingly into the under layer 
toward the head of the bed with tips toward the foot. 
Make more layers, until the bed is about two feet thick 
(Fig. 25); then cover the mattress thus made with your 
poncho, rubber side down, and on top spread one of the 
sleeping blankets, using the other one as a cover. Be 
sure to allow plenty of time for this work and have the 
bed dry and soft. 

Bag-Bed 

When the camp is located where there is no material 
for a bough-bed, each girl can carry with her a bag three 
feet wide and six and one-half feet long, made of strong 
cloth, ticking, soft khaki, or like material, to be filled 
with leaves, grass, or other browse found on or near the 
camp-grounds. Such a mattress made up with poncho 
and blankets is very satisfactory, but it must be well 
filled, so that when you lie on the mattress it will not 
mash flat and hard. 



Camping 61 



Cot-Bed 

For an entire summer camp army cots which fold for 
packing are good and very comfortable with a doubled, 
thick quilt placed on top for a mattress. 

The sporting-goods stores show a great variety of other 
beds, cots, and sleeping-bags, and a line to them will 
bring illustrated catalogues, or, if in the city, you can call 
and see the goods. 

Any of the beds I have described, however, can be used 
to advantage, and I heartily endorse the well-made bough- 
bed, especially if of balsam. 

Pillows 

Make a bag one-half yard square of brown linen or 
cotton cloth, and when you reach camp, gather the best 
browse you can find for filling, but be careful about 
having the pillow too full; keep it soft and comfortable. 
If there is no browse, use clean underwear in its place. 
Fasten the open end of the bag together with large-sized 
patent dress snappers. 

One of the pleasantest phases of a season's camping are 
the Httle side trips for overnight. You hit the trail that 
leads to the chosen spot located some two or three, perhaps 
six or seven, miles distant; a place absolutely dry, where 
you can enjoy the fun of sleeping on the ground without 
shelter, having merely the starry sky for a canopy. Each 
girl can select the spot where she is to sleep and free it 
from all twigs, stones, etc., as the smallest and most insig- 
nificant of these will rob her of sleep and make the night 
most uncomfortable. When the space is smooth mark 
the spot where the shoulders rest when lying down and 
another spot immediately under the hips, then dig a hollow 



62 On the Trail 

for each to fit in easily; cover the sleeping space with 
poncho, rubber side down, and over this lay a folded 
blanket for a mattress, using the second blanket as a cover. 
Your sleep will then probably be sound and refreshing. 

Guards 

Establish watchers, for this temporary camp, in relays 
to keep guard through the night and care for the fire, 
not allowing it to spread, grow too hot, or die down and 
go out. 

If there are eight in the party, the first two, starting in 
at lo p. M., will keep vigil until 12 midnight. These may 
chance to see a porcupine or other small wild animal, 
but the little creatures will not come too near as long as 
your camp-fire is burning. The next two watchers will 
be on duty until 2 a. m., and will doubtless hear, if not see, 
some of the wild life of the forest. The third couple's turn 
lasts until 4 a. m.; then the last two will be awakened in 
time to see the sun rise, listen to the twittering and sing- 
ing of the wild birds, and possibly catch a glimpse of 
wild deer. With 6 a. m. comes broad daylight, and the 
ever-to-be-remembered night in the open is past and gone. 

These side trips bring you into closer touch with nature, 
quicken your love for, and a desire to know more of, the 
wild; and, much to the delight of the campers keeping 
guard through the hours of the night, there comes a keen 
sense of the unusual, of novel experience, of strangeness 
and adventure. 



Exercise 

While wholesome camping calls for suificient physical 
exercise to cause a girl to be blissfully tired at night, and 
yet awaken refreshed and full of energy the next morn- 




Soft wood. 



64 On the Trail 

ing with a good appetite for breakfast, until you become 
accustomed to the outdoor life, it is best to curb your am- 
bition to outdo the other girls in strength and endurance. 
It is best not to overtax yourself by travelling too far on 
a long trail at one stretch, or by lifting too heavy a log, 
stone, or other weight. 

The Camp-Fire 

The outdoor fire in camp bespeaks cheer, comfort, 
and possibilities for a hot dinner, all of which the camper 
appreciates. 

How to Build a Fire 

Choose an open space, if possible, for your fire. Beware 
of having it under tree branches, too near a tent, or in 
any other place that might prove dangerous. Start your 
fire with the tinder nearest at hand, dry leaves, ferns, 
twigs, cones, birch bark, or pine-knot slivers. As the 
tinder begins to burn, add kindling-wood of larger size, 
always remembering that the air must circulate under 
and upward through the kindling ; no fire can live without 
air any more than you can live without breathing. Smother 
a person and he will die, smother a fire and it will die. 

Soft woods are best to use after lighting the tinder; 
they ignite easily and burn quickly, such as pine, spruce, 
alder, birch, soft maple, balsam-fir, and others. When 
the kindling is blazing put on still heavier wood, until you 
have a good, steady fire. Hard wood is better than soft 
when the fire is well going; it burns longer and can usually 
be depended upon for a reliable fire, not sending out 
sparks or sputtering, as do many of the soft woods, but 
burning well and giving a fine bed of hot coals. The 
tree belonging exclusively to America, and which is the 
best of the hardwoods, comes first on the hardwood list. 



6Q On the Trail 

This is hickory. Pecan, chestnut-oak, black birch, basket- 
oaks, white birch, maple, dogwood, beech, red and yellow 
birch, ash, and apple wood when obtainable are excellent. 

Cook-Fire 

Make the cook-fire small and hot; then you can work 
over it in comfort and not scorch both hands and face 
when trying to get near enough to cook, as would be the 
case if the fire were large. 

When in a hurry use dry bark as wood for the cook- 
fire. Hemlock, pine, hickory, and other bark make a hot 
fire in a short time, and water will boil quickly over a 
bark fire. 

Log-Cabin Fire 

Start this fire with two good -sized short sticks or logs. 
Place them about one foot apart parallel to each other. 
At each end across these lay two smaller sticks, and in 
the hollow square formed by the four sticks, put the tin- 
der of cones, birch bark, or dry leaves. 

Across the two upper sticks and over the tinder, make 
a grate by laying slender kindling sticks across from and 
resting on top of the two upper large sticks. Over the 
grate, at right angles to the sticks forming it, place more 
sticks of larger size. Continue in this way, building the 
log-cabin fire until the structure is one foot or so high, 
each layer being placed at right angles to the one beneath 
it. The fire must be lighted from beneath in the pile of 
tinder. I learned this method when on the Pacific slope. 
The fire burns quickly, and the log-cabin plan is a good 
one to follow when heating the bean hole, as the fire can 
be built over the hole, and in burning the red-hot coals 
will fall down into it, or the fire can be built directly in the 
hole; both ways are used by campers. 



Camping 67 



Fire in the Rain 

To build a fire in the rain with no dry wood in sight 
seems a difficult problem, but keep cheerful, hum your 
favorite tune, and look for a pine-knot or birch bark and 
an old dead stump or log. In the centre of the dead wood 
you will find dry wood; dig it out and, after starting the 
fire with either birch bark or pine-knot, use the dry wood 
as kindling. When it begins to burn, add larger pieces 
of wood, and soon the fire will grow strong enough to 
burn wet wood. If there happens to be a big rock in 
your camp, build your fire on the sheltered side and directly 
against the stone, which will act as a windbreak and keep 
the driving rain from extinguishing the fire. A slightly 
shelving bank would also form a shelter for it. A pine- 
knot is always a good friend to the girl camper, both in 
dry and wet weather, but is especially friendly when it 
rains and everything is dripping wet. 

You will find pine-knots in wooded sections where 
pine-trees grow; or, if you are located near water where 
there are no trees, look for pine-knots in driftwood washed 
ashore. When secured cut thin slices down part way all 
around the elongated knot and circle it with many layers 
of shavings until the knot somewhat resembles a toy tree. 
The inside will be absolutely dry, and this branching knot 
will prove reliable and start your fire without fail. Birch 
bark will start a fire even when the bark is damp, and it 
is one of the best things you can have as a starter for an 
outdoor, rainy-day fire. 

Take your cue from the forest guides, and while in the 
woods always carry some dry birch bark in your pocket 
for a fire in case of rain. 



68 On the Trail 



Camp Fireplace 

One way to make the outdoor fireplace is to lay two 
green logs side by side on the ground in a narrow V shape, 
but open at both ends; only a few inches at one end, 
a foot or more at the other. The fire is built between 
the logs, and the frying-pan and pail of water, resting on 
both logs, bridge across the fire. Should the widest space 
between the logs be needed, place two slender green logs 
at right angles across the V logs, and have these short top 
cross logs near enough together to hold the frying-pans 
set on them (Fig. 26). 

When there are no green logs, build the fireplace with 
three rectangular sides of stone, open front, and make 
the fire in the centre; the pots and pans rest across the 
fire on the stones. 

If neither stones nor logs are available, dig a circle of 
fresh earth as a safeguard and have the fire in its centre. 
Here you will need two strong, forked- top stakes driven 
down into the ground directly opposite each other, one 
on each side of the circle. Rest the end of a stout green 
stick in the forked tops of the stakes, and use it to hang 
pots and pails from when cooking. A fire can also be 
safeguarded with a circle of stones placed close together. 
Another method of outdoor cooking may be seen on page 
81, where leaning stakes are used from which to hang 
cooking utensils over the fire. 

One more caution about possibilities of causing forest 
fire. Terrible wide-spread fires have resulted from what 
was supposed to be an extinguished outdoor fire. Do not 
trust it, but when you are sure the camp-fire is out, pour 
on more water over the fire and all around the unburned 
edge of surrounding ground; then throw on fresh earth 
until the fire space is covered. Be always on the safe 




Bringing wood for the fire. 



70 On the Trail 

side. Tack up on a tree in the camp, where all must see 
it, a copy of the state laws regarding forest fires, as shown 
in photograph frontispiece. 

On forest lands much of the ground is deep with tangled 
rootlets and fibres mixed in with the mould, and a fire 
may be smouldering down underneath, where you cannot 
see it. Have a care. 

The permanent-camp fireplace, built to do service for 
several seasons, is usually of big, heavy, green logs, stones, 
and earth. The logs, about three and one-half feet long, 
are built log-cabin fashion, some twenty-eight inches high, 
with all crevices filled in and firmly padded with earth 
and stones. Big stones are anchored securely along the 
top of the earth-covered log sides and back of the fire- 
place, raising these higher than the front. The space 
inside the walled fireplace is very nearly filled up with 
earth, and the fire is built on this earth. Surfaces of logs 
which may have been left exposed where the fire is to 
be made are safeguarded with earth (Fig. 27). 

Such a fireplace is big, substantial, firm, and lasting. 
Many of them may be seen in the Adirondacks. They 
usually face the camp shelter, but are located at a safe 
distance, fully two yards, from it. Fires built in these 
are generally used as social cheer-fires, but you can have 
the cheer-fire even though the substantial fireplace be 
non est, if in the evening you pile more wood on the 
cook-fire, making it large enough for all to gather around 
and have a good time, telling stories, laughing, talking, 
and singing. 

An excellent rule in camp is to have always on hand 
plenty of fire-wood. Replenish the reserve stock every 
day as inroads are made upon it, and have some sort of 
shelter or covering where the wood will be kept dry and 
ready for immediate use. 



Camping 71 



Camp Cooking. Provisions 

In the woods one is generally hungry except immediately 
after a good meal, and provisions and cooking are of vital 
interest to the camper. The list of essentials is not very 
long and, when the camp is a permanent one, non-essen- 
tials may be added to the larder with advantage. 

Bread of some kind will form part of every meal, and 
a few loaves freshly baked can be taken to camp to start 
with while you are getting settled. 

The quickest bread to cook is the delectable flapjack, 
and it is quite exciting to toss it in the air, see it turn over 
and catch it again — if you can. 

Flapjacks 

Mix dry flour, baking-powder, and salt together, i good 
teaspoonful of Royal baking-powder to every 2 cups of 
flour, and i level teaspoonful of salt to i quart (4 cups) 
of flour. To make the batter, beat i egg and add 1)4 cups 
of milk, or i cup of milk and }4 cup of water; unsweet- 
ened condensed milk diluted according to directions on 
can may be used. Carefully and gradually stir in enough 
of the flour you have prepared to make a creamy batter, 
be sure it is smooth and without lumps; then stir in i 
heaping teaspoonful of sugar, better still molasses, to 
make the cakes brown. Grease the frying-pan with a 
piece of fat pork or bacon, have the pan hot, and, with 
a large spoon or a cup, ladle out the batter into the pan, 
forming three small cakes to be turned by a knife, or one 
large cake to be turned by tossing. Use the knife to lift the 
edges of the cakes as they cook, and when you see them a 
golden brown, turn quickly. Or, if the cake is large, loosen 
it; then lift the pan and quickly toss the cake up into the 



1% On the Trail 

air in such a way that it will turn over and land safely, 
brown side up, on the pan. Unless you are skilled in toss- 
ing flapjacks, don't risk wasting the cake by having it 
fall on the ground or in the fire, but confine your efforts 
to the small, knife-turned cakes. Serve them '' piping 
hot," and if there are no plates, each camper can deftly 
and quickly roll her flapjack into cylinder form of many 
layers and daintily and comfortably eat it while holding 
the roll between forefinger and thumb. 

Keep the frying-pan well greased while cooking the 
cakes, rubbing the pan with grease each time before pour- 
ing in fresh batter. 

Flapjacks are good with butter, delicious with creamy 
maple-sugar soft enough to spread smoothly over the 
butter. The sugar comes in cans. Ordinary maple- 
syrup can be used, but is apt to drip over the edges if the 
cake is held in the hand. 

Well-cooked cold rice mixed with the batter will give a 
delicate griddle-cake and make a change from the regular 
flapjack. 

Biscuits 

Biscuits are more easily made than raised bread and 
so are used largely in its place while in camp. The 
proportions of flour and baking-powder are the same as 
for flapjacks. To 4 cups of flour mix 2 teaspoonfuls of 
Royal baking-powder and i level teaspoonful of salt; 
add shortening about the size of an egg, either lard or 
drippings. Divide the shortening into small bits and, 
using the tips of your fingers, rub it well into the dry 
flour just prepared; then gradually stir in cold water to 
make a soft dough, barely stiff enough to be roHed out 
^ inch thick on bread-board, clean flat stone, or large, 
smooth piece of flattened bark. Whichever is used must 



Camping 73 

be well floured, as must also the rolling-pin and biscuit 
cutter. A clean glass bottle or smooth round stick may 
be used as rolling-pin, and the cutter can be a baking- 
powder can, or the biscuits may be cut square, or 4 inches 
long and 2 inches wide with a knife. The dough may 
also be shaped into a loaf >< inch thick and baked in a 
pan by planting the pan in a bed of hot coals, covering 
it with another pan or some substitute, and placing a 
deep layer of hot coals all over the cover. The biscuits 
should bake in about fifteen minutes. For a hurry meal 
each camper can take a strip of dough, wind it spirally 
around a peeled thick stick, which has first been heated, 
and cook her own spiral biscuit by holding it over the fire 
and constantly turning the stick. Biscuits, in common 
with everything cooked over a hot wood-fire, need con- 
stant watching that they may not burn. Test them with 
a clean splinter of wood; thrust it into the biscuit and if 
no dough clings to the wood the biscuits are done. 

Johnny-Cake 

Served hot, split open and buttered, these Kentucky 
johnny-cakes with a cup of good coffee make a fine, hearty 
breakfast, very satisfying and good. 

Allow )4 cup of corn-meal for each person, and to every 
4 cups of meal add i teaspoonful of salt, mix well; then 
pour water, which is boiling hard, gradually into the meal, 
stirring constantly to avoid having any lumps. When 
the consistency is like soft mush, have ready a frying-pan 
almost full of hot drippings or lard, dip your hands into 
cold water to enable you to handle the hot dough, and, 
taking up enough corn-meal dough to make a large-sized 
biscuit, pat it in your hands into a ^-inch-thick cake and 
gently drop it into the hot fat; immediately make another 
cake, drop it into the fat, and continue until the frying- 



74 On the Trail 

pan is full. As soon as one johnny-cake browns on the 
lower side turn it over, remove each cake from the fat as 
soon as done, and serve as they cook. 

Corn-meal must be thoroughly scalded with boiling 
water when making any kind of corn bread in order to 
have the bread soft and not dry and " chaffy." 

For baked corn bread add 2 full teaspoons of baking- 
powder and stir in 2 eggs, after 4 cups of meal and i 
teaspoonful of salt have been thoroughly scalded and 
allowed to cool a little. Pour this corn-meal dough into 
a pan which has been generously greased, and bake. 

Corn-meal needs a hot oven and takes longer to bake 
than wheat-flour biscuits. 

Corn-Meal Mush 

Corn-meal mush does not absolutely require fresh cream 
or milk when served. It is good eaten with butter and 
very nourishing. Many like it with maple-syrup or com- 
mon molasses. 

Time is required to make well-cooked mush; at least one 
hour will be necessary. To 2 quarts of boiHng, bubbling 
water add i teaspoonful of salt, and very slowly, little 
by little, add 2 cups of corn-meal, stirring constantly 
and not allowing the water to cease boiling. Do not stop 
stirring until the mush has cooked about ten minutes. 
It may then be placed higher up from the fire, where it 
will not scorch, and boiling water added from time to 
time as needed to keep the mush of right consistency. 
The cold mush may be made into a tempting dish, if 
sliced j^-inch thick and fried brown in pork fat. Many 
cold cooked cereals can be treated in the same way; 
sprinkled with flour these will brown better. 



Camming 75 



Kentucky Bread 

Kentucky bread is made of flour, salt, and water. It is 
generally known as beaten biscuit. Mix 2 scant tea- 
spoonfuls of salt with I quart of flour, add enough cold 
water to make a stiff, smooth dough and knead, pull, and 
pound the dough until it blisters; the longer it is worked 
and beaten the better. Roll out very thin, cut round or 
into squares and bake. These biscuits may be quickly 
made, are simple and wholesome. 

Cocoa 

Good cocoa may be made by substituting cold milk 
and cold water for hot. Follow directions on the can as 
to proportion, and add the cold liquids after the cocoa is 
mixed to a smooth paste; then boil. Either unsweetened 
condensed milk or milk powder can take the place of fresh 
milk. 

Coffee 

For every camper allow i tablespoonful of ground coffee, 
then I extra spoonful for the pot. Put the dry coffee into 
the coffee-pot, and to settle it add a crumbled egg-shell; 
then pour in a little cold water and stir all together; 
when there are no egg-shells use merely cold water. 
Add I cupful of cold water for each camper, and 2 for 
the pot, set the coffee-pot over the fire and let it boil for 
a few moments, take it from the fire and pour into the 
spout a little cold water, then place the coffee where it 
will keep hot — not cook, but settle. 

Tea 

Allow I scant teaspoonful of tea for each person, scald 
the teapot, measure the tea into the pot, and pour in as 



76 On the Trail 

many cups of boiling water as there are spoonfuls of tea, 
adding an extra cupful for the pot. Never let tea boil. 

Boiled Potatoes 

Wash potatoes, cut out any blemish, and put them on 
to cook in cold water over the fire. They are much better 
boiled while wearing their jackets. Allow from one-half 
to three-quarters of an hour for boiling, test them with 
a sliver of wood that will pierce through the centre when 
the potato is done. When cooked pour off the boiling 
water, set off the fire to one side where they will keep 
hot, and raise one edge of the lid to allow the steam to 
escape. Serve while very hot. 

Baked Potatoes 

Wrap each potato in wet leaves and place them all on 
hot ashes that lie over hot coals, put more hot ashes on 
top of the potatoes, and over the ashes place a deep bed 
of red-hot coals. It will require about forty minutes or 
more for potatoes to bake. Take one out when you think 
they should be done; if soft enough to yield to the pres- 
sure when squeezed between thumb and finger, the po- 
tato is cooked. Choose potatoes as near of a size as pos- 
sible; then all will be baked to a turn at the same time. 

Bean Soup and Baked Beans 

Look over one quart of dried beans, take out all bits 
of foreign matter and injured beans; then wash the 
beans in several waters and put them to soak overnight 
in fresh water. Next morning scald i ]/2 pounds salt pork, 
scrape it well, rinse, and with i teaspoonful of dried onion 
or half of a fresh one, put on to boil with the beans in cold 



Camping 11 

water. Cook slowly for several hours. When the water 
boils low, add more boiling water and boil until the beans 
are soft. 

To make soup, dip out a heaping cupful of the boiled 
beans, mash them to a paste, then pour the liquid from 
the boiled beans over the paste and stir until well mixed; 
if too thin add more beans; if too thick add hot water 
until of the right consistency, place the soup over the fire 
to reheat, and serve very hot. To bake beans, remove 
the pork from the drained, partially cooked beans, score 
it across the top and replace it in the pot in midst of and 
extending a trifle above the surface of the beans, add i 
cup of hot water and securely cover the top of the pot 
with a lid or some substitute. Sink the pot well into the 
glowing coals and shovel hot coals over all. Add more 
hot water from time to time if necessary. 

Beans cooked in a bean hole rival those baked in other 
ways. Dig the hole about i}4 feet deep and wide, build a 
fire in it, and keep it burning briskly for hours; the oven 
hole must be hot. When the beans are ready, rake the 
fire out of the hole; then sink the pot down into the hole 
and cover well with hot coals and ashes, placing them all 
over the sides and top of the pot. Over these shovel a 
thick layer of earth, protecting the top with grass sod 
or thick blanket of leaves and bark, that rain may not 
penetrate to the oven. Let the beans bake all night. 

Bacon 

Sliced bacon freshly cut is best; do not bring it to camp 
in jars or cans, but cut it as needed. Each girl may have 
the fun of cooking her own bacon. 

Cut long, slender sticks with pronged ends, sharpen 
the prongs and they will hold the bacon; or use sticks 
with split ends and wedge in the bacon between the two 



78 On the Trail 

sides of the split, then toast it over the fire. Other small 
pieces of meat can be cooked in the same way. Bacon 
boiled with greens gives the vegetable a fine flavor, as 
it also does string-beans when cooked with them. It 
may, however, be boiled alone for dinner, and is good fried 
for breakfast. 

Game Birds 

Game birds can be baked in the embers. Have ready a 
bed of red-hot coals covered with a thin layer of ashes, and 
after drawing the bird, dip it in water to wet the feathers; 
then place it on the ash-covered red coals, cover the bird 
with more ashes, and heap on quantities of red coals. 
If the bird is small it should be baked in about one-half 
hour. When done strip off the skin, carrying feathers 
with it, and the bird will be clean and appetizing. Birds 
can also be roasted in the bean-pot hole, but in this way, 
they must first be picked, drawn, and rinsed clean; then 
cut into good-sized pieces and placed in the pot with 
fat pork, size of an egg, for seasoning; after pouring in 
enough water to cover the meat, fasten the pot lid on 
securely and bury the pot in the glowing hot hole under 
a heap of red-hot coals. Cover with earth, the same as 
when baking beans. 

Fish 

Fish cooked in the embers is very good, and you need 
not first remove scales or fins, but clean the fish, season 
it with salt and pepper, wrap it in fresh, wet, green leaves 
or wet blank paper, not printed paper, and bury in the 
coals the same as a bird. When done the skin, scales, and 
fins can all be pulled off together, leaving the delicious 
hot fish ready to serve. 

To boil a fish: First scale and clean it; then cut off 



Camping 79 

head and tail. If you have a piece of new cheese-cloth to 
wrap the fish in, it can be stuffed with dressing made of 
dry crumbs of bread or biscuits well seasoned with butter, 
or bits of pork, pepper, and a very small piece of onion. 
The cloth covering must be wrapped around and tied 
with white string. When the fish is ready, put it into 
boiling water to which has been added i tablespoonful 
of vinegar and a little salt. The vinegar tends to keep 
the meat firm, and the dressing makes the fish more of a 
dinner dish; both, however, can be omitted. Allow about 
twenty minutes for boiling a three-pound fish. 

The sooner a fish is cooked after being caught the better. 
To scale a fish, lay it on a flat stone or log, hold it by the 
head and with a knife scrape off the scales. Scale each 
side and, with a quick stroke, cut off the head and lower 
fins. The back fin must have incisions on each side in 
order to remove it. Trout are merely scraped and cleaned 
by drawing out the inside with head and gills. Do this 
by forcing your hand in and grasping tight hold of the 
gullet. 

To clean most fish it is necessary to slit open the under 
side, take out the inside, wash the fish, and wipe it dry 
with a clean cloth. 

If the camping party is fond of fish, and fish frequently 
forms part of a meal, have a special clean cloth to use 
exclusively for drying the fish. 

Provisions for One Person for Two Weeks. To be Multiplied 
by Number of Campers, and Length of Time if Stay is over 
Two Weeks 

Essential Foods 

Outdoor life seems to require certain kinds of foods; 
these we call essentials; others in addition to them are in 
the nature of luxuries or non-essentials. 



80 



On the Trail 



List 



Wheat flour 

Corn-meal 

Baking-powder 

Coffee 

Tea . 

Cocoa 

Pork 

Bacon 

Salt . 

Pepper 



Essentials 



6 lbs. 
2i^ lbs. 

3^ lb. 

^ lb. 

Vs lb. 

y2 lb. 
I lb. 

2^4 lbs. 

^ lb. 

I oz. 



Sugar . . . 
Butter . . . 
Milk, dried . 
Lard .... 
Egg powder 
Fruit, dried . 
Potatoes, dried 
Beans . . . 
Maple-syrup 
Vinegar . . 



3 lbs. 
1 3^ lbs. 

^ lb. 

M lb. 

H lb. 
I lb. 
iVz lbs. 
iH lbs. 
I pt. 

H pt. 



List 

N on-Essential s 



lbs. 



Yi doz. 
Vx lb. 



Rice .... 

Lemons . . . 

Erbswurst . . 

Soup tablets ... M lb. 

Baker's chocolate (slightly 

sweetened) . . 3^ lb. 

Maple-sugar ... 3^ lb. 

Ham 5 lbs. 

Nuts 2 lbs. 



Marmalade . 
Preserves . . 
Citric acid . . 
Onions, dried 
Cheese . . . 
Potatoes, fresh 
Codfish . . . 
Vegetables, dried 



^ jar 
can 

i lb. 
oz. 
lb. 

lb. 
^ lb. 



Sanitation 

Keep your camp scrupulously clean. Do not litter up 
the place, your health and happiness greatly depend 
upon observing the laws of hygiene. Make sure after 
each meal that all kitchen refuse is collected and de- 
posited in the big garbage hole, previously dug for that 
purpose, and well covered with a layer of fresh earth. 




ANOTMEf\VvAY OP 

Mang,ing| theCi^anb 
Out of IDoof^& 



Camp fires and camp sanitation. 



82 On the Trail 

Impress upon your mind that fresh earth is a disinfectant 
and keeps down all odors. 

Erect a framework with partially open side entrance 
for a retiring-room. Use six strong forked-topped poles 
planted in an irregular square as uprights (Fig. 28), and 
across these lay slender poles, fitting the ends well into 
the forked tops of the uprights (Fig. 28). Half-way 
down from the top, place more cross poles, resting them 
on the crotches left on the uprights. Have these last cross 
poles as nearly the same distance from the ground as 
possible and over them hang thick branches, hooking the 
branches on by the stubs on their heavy ends. Also hang 
thickly foliaged branches on the top cross poles, using the 
stubs where smaller branches have been lopped off as 
hooks, as on the lower row (Fig. 29) ; then peg down the 
bottom ends of the hanging branches to the ground with 
sharpened two-pronged crotches cut from branches. The 
upper row of branches should overlap the under row one 
foot or more. Make the seat by driving three stout stakes 
firmly into the ground; two at the back, one in front, 
and on these nail three crosspieces. 

Never throw dish water or any refuse near your tent 
or on the camp grounds. 

Burn or hury all trash, remembering that earth and 
fire are your good servants, and with their assistance you 
can have perfect camp cleanliness, which will go a long 
way toward keeping away a variety of troublesome flies 
and make camp attractive and wholesome. 

Camp Spirit 

Thoughtfulness for others; kindliness; the willingness 
to do your share of the work, and more, too; the habit 
of making light of all discomforts; cheerfulness under 
all circumstances; and the determination never to sulk. 



Camping 83 

imagine you are slighted, or find fault with people, con- 
ditions, or things. To radiate good-will, take things as 
they come and enjoy them, and to do your full share of 
entertainment and fun-making — this is the true camp 
spirit. 



CHAPTER IV 
WHAT TO WEAR ON THE TRAIL 

Camp Outfits. Clothing. Personal Outfits. Camp Packs. 
Duffel-Bags and What to Put in Them 

To prepare your own camping outfit for the coming 
summer, to plan, to work out your lists, to select ma- 
terials, and make many of the things just as you want 
them or even to hunt up the articles and purchase them, 
while all the time delightful visions of trailing and camp 
life dance before you, is to know the true joy of anticipa- 
tion, and is great fun. 

Clothing 

Make your dress for the trail absolutely comfortable, 
not too heavy, too tight, too hot, or too cool. No part 
of the clothing should bind or draw. 

Brown or dark gray are the best colors for the forest; 
avoid wearing those which frighten the timid wild life, 
for you want to make friends with the birds and animals, 
so do not wear metal buttons, buckles, or anything that 
shines or sparkles. 

Underwear 

' For girl campers the light-weight, pure-woollen under- 
wear is best, especially if you locate in the mountains, 
or the Canadian or Maine forests. On cold days two 
light-weight union garments are warmer than one of heavy 
weight. Wool is never clammy and cold, it absorbs per- 

84 



What to Wear on the Trail 85 

spiration and when on the trail prevents the chilly feeling 
often experienced when halting for a rest in the forest. 

Union garments may be obtained in a variety of weights, 
and a one-piece suit is the only garment necessary to 
wear under bloomers and middy when at camp. 

Leave corsets at home, they have no place in the out- 
door life, and you will be freer if you discard the dress 
skirt when at camp and on the trail. Have your muscles 
free, be able to take in long, deep breaths, to move readily 
all portions of your body, and not be hampered in any 
way by ill-fitting, uncomfortable clothing. There must be 
unrestricted freedom of arms and limbs for a girl to be 
able to use them easily in climbing mountains or hihs, 
scrambling over fallen trees, sliding over rocks, jumping 
from stone to stone, or from root to half -sunken log on 
wet trails of the forest. 

Stockings 

Select your stockings with care. Let them be of wool, 
strong, soft, and absolutely satisfactory when the shoe 
is on. The aim of the entire camp dress is to have it so 
comfortable and well adapted to outdoor life that you will 
forget it; think no more of it than a bird does of its 
feathers. When woollen stockings are worn, wet feet are 
not apt to give one cold, for the feet do not become chilled 
even when it is necessary to stand in the reedy edge of a 
mountain lake or stream. If, however, you cannot wear 
wool, use cotton stockings. Remember that wool often 
shrinks in the wash. Allow for this when purchasing 
goods, though it is said, on reliable authority, that if 
laundered with care the garments will not shrink. 

When washing woollen underwear use very soapy, cool 
water (not icy) with addition of a little borax, or ammonia, 
if you have either, and do not rub soap directly on wool; 



86 On the Trail 

it mats the little fibres and this causes the wool to shrink. 
For the same reason avoid rubbing the garments if possible 
during the cleansing process. All that is usually necessary- 
is to squeeze and souse them well, then rinse in water of 
the same temperature; do not wring the things; squeeze 
them and hang them up to dry. Changes of temperature 
in the water when washing wool will cause the wool to 
shrink. To alternate between cold and warm, hot and 
lukewarm water will surely cause the clothing to grow 
much smaller and stiff er; keep both wash and rinse water 
either cold or lukewarm; cold is safer. 

Allow no one to persuade you to take old clothes to 
camp; they will soon need mending and prove a torment. 

Shoes 

Wear low-heeled, high-laced shoes of stout leather and 
easy fit. Make them water-proof by giving the leather a 
good coat of hot, melted mutton tallow, completely cover- 
ing the shoes and working the tallow into all crevices. 
Be sure to do this, as it is worse than useless to depend 
upon rubber overshoes when trailing; sharp stones cut, 
and roots, twigs, and underbrush tear the rubber, with 
the result that the overshoes soon fill with water and 
your feet swim in little lakes. Test your shoes well be- 
fore taking them to camp, be perfectly satisfied that 
they are comfortable and well-fitting, wear them steadily 
for one week or more. It is very unwise to risk new 
shoes on the trail, and it is of the utmost importance that 
the feet be kept in good condition. Be kind to your feet. 

Camping Dress 

The most serviceable and practical dress for camping 
is a three-piece suit, made of a fadeless, soft quality of 
gray or brown material. 





LeGjGiIN 



IDuFfEL-BAG|5 



"Poncho 





TpyMLEP^s Boot 



Trailers' outfits. 



88 On the Trail 

The middy-blouse while loose can be well-fitting, with 
long sleeves roomy enough to allow of pushing up above 
the elbow when desired. Sew two small patch pockets 
high on the left breast — one for your watch, the other for 
your compass; protect the pockets with flaps which fasten 
down over the open top with dress snaps. On the right 
breast sew one good-sized pocket. 

In addition to these you will need one large pocket on 
both right and left side of middy, below belt line, making 
in all three large and two small pockets. The belt is held 
in place by sliding it through loops sewed on the middy, 
one at the back and one on each side. 

Make the skirt of this suit short enough for ease and 
of generous width, not to draw at front, but give perfect 
freedom of the limbs. Have a seam pocket in each side 
of the front breadth, and fasten the skirt down one side 
from belt to hem. It can then be quickly removed and 
used as a cape or a wind break when occasion requires. 
The bloomers, well-fitting and comfortable, gathered be- 
low the knee with best quahty of elastic, that it may last, 
can have a deep pocket sewed across the front of each leg, 
several inches conveniently below waist-line. 

Hat 

A soft, light-weight felt hat with brim sufficiently wide 
to shade the eyes will prove the best head covering for 
the trail. Don't use hatpins; your hat will cling to the 
head if you substitute a strip of woollen cloth in place of 
the inside leather band. The clinging wool prevents the 
hat from being readily knocked off by overhanging branches 
or blown off on windy days. 



What to Wear on the Trail 89 



Check List of Apparel 

Go light when off for the woods, take with you only 
those things which seem to be absolutely necessary; re- 
member that you will carry your own pack and be your 
own laundress, so hesitate about including too many 
washable garments.. Make out your list, then consider 
the matter carefully and realize that every one of the 
articles, even the very smallest, has a way of growing 
heavier and heavier and adding to the ever-increasing 
weight of your pack the longer you walk, so be wise, read 
over your list and cut it down, decide that you can do 
without a number of things thought at first to be indis- 
pensable. 

In addition to your camp dress described, the following 
list forms a basis to work upon, to be added to, taken 
from, or substitution made according to location, climate, 
and nature of the country where you will pitch camp: 

One extra suit of wool underwear. Wash suit as soon as 
changed. 

One extra pair of stockings. Every morning put on a 
fresh pair, washing the discarded ones the same day. 

One high-necked, long-sleeved, soft, woven undershirt for 
cold days. 

One extra thin middy-blouse for hot days. 

Three pocket handkerchiefs, each laundered as soon as dis- 
carded. 

One kimono, soft, warm wool, buttoned down front, not eider- 
down (it is too bulky), color brown or dark gray. 

One bathing-suit without skirt, made in one-piece, loose, belted 
waist with bloomers; suit opened on shoulders with 
strong button and buttonhole fastenings. 

One warm sweater with high turned-over collar and sleeves 
good and long. On the trail carry your sweater by tying 
the sleeves around your waist, allowing the sweater to 
hang down at the back. 



90 On the Trail 

One pair of gloves, strong, pliable, easy-fitting chamois, if 
you feel that you need them. The bare, free hands are 
better. 

One pair of strong, snug, well-fitting leggins matching camp 
dress in color, with no buttons or buckles to tangle on 
underbrush. The fastening can be covered by smooth 
outer flap. 

One pair of felt slippers or thick-soled moccasins for tent. 

Four extra strips of elastic for renewing those in knees of 
bloomers. 

One large, strong, soft silk or cotton neckerchief, for pro- 
tecting neck from sun, rain, and cold, also good to fold 
diagonally and use for arm sling or tie over hat in a 
hard wind; silk is best. 

Two head-nets if your stay is long, one if short, to be worn 
in case of swarms of pestiferous flies and mosquitoes. 
Especially needed for protection from the midge, black- 
fly, etc., found in northern forests and elsewhere during 
the spring and through to the middle or last of July. 
Your net can be of fine mesh bobbinet; if you have only 
white, dye it black; all other colors are apt to dazzle the 
eyes. The best material to use is black Brussels net. 
Cut a strip of net long enough to fit easily around your 
shoulders and allow of some fulness. Take the measure- 
ment smoothly around the shoulders with a piece of tape 
and add to this about three-eighths of the entire length 
you have just measured, which will give you the length 
required. The width should be sufficient to allow of the 
net reaching from base of hat crown across over brim 
and down over top of shoulders, about twenty-two 
inches or more in all. Cut the net according to size 
needed; then fold the strip at centre across the width, 
fold again, making four even folds. Once more fold 
^ and you will have divided the net into eight equal parts. 
Mark the net at each fold and open it out (Fig. 30). 
Cut armholes in the divisions marked 2 (Fig. 30) to fit 
over the shoulders, sew together the two ends, bind the 
shoulder armholes holding the net loosely that it may 
not pull and strain. Sew an elastic to back corner of 




The head-net and blanket-roll. 



9^ On the Trail 

each armhole, hem the top of net strip and run an elastic 
through hem to fit snugly on base of hat crown. Gather 
lower edges of net; then try the net on, adjusting lower 
and upper gathers so that the veil will blouse a little, 
remembering not to let the net touch your face; if it 
should, the little tormentors will bite through and tor- 
ture you. Sew a piece of black tape across lower edge 
of the front and another across lower edge of the 
back, fitting the tape to lie smoothly over chest and 
back; then bring forward the hanging pieces of elastic, 
adjust them comfortably under the arms, and mark 
length of elastic to reach around under arm and fasten 
with dress snaps at front corner of armhole. Cut elastic 
and finish net (Fig. 31). 
Ornaments — Never take rings, bracelets, necklaces, or jewelry 
of any kind to camp; leave all such things at home, and 
with them ribbons, beads, and ornaments of all de- 
scriptions. 

Check List of Toilet Articles 

One comb, not silver-backed. 

One hand-mirror to hang or stand up. 

One tooth-brush in case. 

One tube of tooth-paste, or its equivalent. 

One nail-brush. 

One cake of unscented toilet-soap. 

Two cakes of laundry-soap. 

One package of borax or securely corked bottle of ammonia. 

One tube of cold-cream. 

One baking-powder can of pure, freshly "tried out" mutton 
tallow, made so by boiling in pure water until melted, 
then allowed to cool and harden. When taken from the 
' water, again melted and, while hot, strained through a 
clean cloth into the can. Good to remove pitch and 
balsam-gum from the hands, to use as cold-cream to 
soften the hands, and excellent to water-proof the shoes. 

One wash-cloth, washed, aired, and sunned every day. In 
rainy weather, washed and dried. 



What to Wear on the Trail 93 

Two hand towels, each washed as soon as soiled. 

One bath towel, washed as soon as used. 

One manicure-scissors. 

One package sandpaper nail-files. 

Two papers of hair-pins. 

One paper of common pins, also little flat pocket pincushion 

well filled around edge with pins. 
Two papers of large-sized safety-pins. 

Check List of Personal Camp Property 

One note-book and pencil for taking notes on wild birds, 
animals, trees, etc. 

One needle-case, compact with needles and strong white 
and black thread, wound on cardboard reels (spools are 
too bulky). Scissors, thimble, and large-eyed tape-needle 
for running elastic through hem in bloomers and head- 
net, when needed. 

Two papers of very large sized safety-pins of horse-blanket 
kind. 

One roll of tape, most useful in many ways. 

One whistle, the loudest and shrillest to be found, worn on 
cord around the neck, for calling help when lost or in 
case of need. A short, simple system of signalling calls 
should be adopted. 

One compass, durable and absolutely true. 

One watch, inexpensive but trustworthy. Do not take your 
gold watch. 

One package of common post-cards, with lead pencil at- 
tached. The postals to take the place of letters. 

One package writing-paper and stamped envelopes, if post- 
cards do not meet the needs. 

One pocket-knife, a big, strong one, with substantial, sharp, 
strong blades, for outdoor work and to use at meals. 

One loaded camera, in case which has secure leather loops 
through which your belt can be slipped to carry camera 
and hold it steady, leaving the hands free and preclud- 
ing danger of smashing the instrument should a mis- 
step on mossy stone or a trip over unseen vine or root 



94 On the Trail 

suddenly throw you down and send the camera sailing 
on a distance ahead. Such an accident befell a girl 
camper who was too sure that her precious camera would 
be safest if carried in her hand. Wear the camera well 
back that you may not fall on it should you stumble, 
or the camera can be carried on strap slung from the 
right shoulder. 

Three or more rolls of extra films, the quantity depending 
upon your length of stay at camp and the possibilities 
for interesting subjects. 

One fishing-rod and fishing-tackle outfit. Choose the simple 
and useful rather than the fancy and expensive. Select 
your outfit according to the particular kind of fishing 
you will find near camp. There is a certain different 
style of rod and tackle for almost every variety of fish. 
If fishing is not to be a prominent feature of the camp, 
you might take line and hooks, and wait until you reach 
camp to cut your fishing-pole. 

One tin cup, with open handle to slide over belt. The cup will 
serve you with cool sparkling water, with cocoa, coffee, 
or tea as the case may be, and it will also be your soup 
bowl. Keep the inside of the cup bright and shiny. 
While aluminum is much lighter than other metal, it 
is not advisable to take to camp either cup, teaspoon, 
or fork of aluminum because it is such a good conductor 
of heat that those articles would be very apt to burn 
your lips if used with hot foods. 

One dinner knife, if you object to using your pocket-knife. 

One dinner fork, not silver. 

One teaspoon, not silver. 

One plate, may be of aluminum or tin, can be kept bright 
by scouring with soap and earth. 

Two warm wool double blankets, closely woven and of good 
^ size. The U. S. Army blankets are of the best. With 
safety-pins blankets can be turned into sleeping-bags and 
hammocks. 

One poncho, light in weight to wear over shoulders, spread 
on ground rubber side down to protect from dampness, 
can be used in various ways. 



What to Wear on the Trail 95 

One pillow-bag. 

One mattress-bag. 

One water-proof match-safe. 

One belt hatchet in case, or belt sheath small axe, for chop- 
ping wood and felling small trees, but, be very careful 
when using either of these tools. Before going to camp 
find some one who can give you proper instructions in 
handling one or both, and practise carefully following 
directions. Be very cautious and go slow until you be- 
come an expert. Outdoor books and magazines should 
be consulted for information, and if you do not feel 
absolutely confident of your ability to use the hatchet 
or axe after practising, do not take them with you. For 
the sake of others as well as yourself, you have not 
the right to take chances of injuring either others or 
yourself through inability to use safely any tool. Do 
not attempt to use a regular-sized axe, it is very danger- 
ous. One guide told me that after a tenderfoot chopped 
a cruel gash nearly through his foot when using the 
guide's axe, that axe was never again loaned, but kept 
in a safe place and not allowed to be touched by any 
one except the owner. 

Check List for First Aid 

One hot-water bag, good for all pains and aches, and a com- 
fort when one is chilly. 

One package pure ginger pulverized or ground, to make hot 
ginger tea in case of chill, pains in the bowels, or when 
you have met with an accidental ducking or are wet 
through to the skin by rain. Never mind if the tea does 
burn, ginger always stings when helping one. Be a 
good sport, take your medicine. 

One box of charcoal tablets for dyspepsia or indigestion. 

One package bicarbonate of soda (baking-soda); good for 
burns, sprinkle well with soda, see that the burn is com- 
pletely covered, then cover lightly with cloth, and do 
not disturb it for a long time. 

One bottle of ammonia well corked. Tie the cork down firmly 



96 On the Trail 

in the bottle (Fig. 32); a flannel case or raffia covering 
will protect the glass from breakage. Good, to smell in 
case of faintness, but care must be taken not to hold it 
too near the nose, as the ammonia might injure the delicate 
membranes, as would also smelling-salts. Safer to move 
the bottle or cloth wet with ammonia slowly back and 
forth near the nose. Good also for insect bites. 

One roll of adhesive plaster. Cut into lengths for holding 
covered ointment or poultice in place, the strips criss- 
cross over the poultice, but are not attached, the ends 
only are pressed on the bare skin to which they firmly 
adhere. 

Two rolls of 2>^ or 3 inch wide surgeon bandages (not 
gauze) for general use where bandages are needed. 

One small package of absorbent cotton. 

Two mustard plasters, purchased at drug store; good for 
stomachache. 

One package of powdered licorice to use as a laxative. Dissolve 
a little licorice in water and drink it. To keep the 
bowels open means to ward off a host of evils. It is even 
more essential that the inside of the body be kept clean 
than it is to have the outside clean. To this end make 
a practise of drinking a great deal of pure water; drink 
it before breakfast, between meals (not at meals), and 
before retiring. If you do this, you will probably not 
need other laxative, especially if you eat fruit either 
fresh or stewed. Fruit should form part of every day's 
fare. Keep your bowels open. 

One tube of Carron oil, to use for burns or scalds. 

One small bottle of camphor, for headaches. 

One small bag of salt — good dissolved in water, i teaspoonful 
to I pint of water, for bathing tired or inflamed eyes, 
often effects a cure. Good for bathing affected spots of 
^ ivy poison, good for sore-throat gargle, also for nose- 
bleed; snuff, then plug nose. Good for brushing teeth. 
For all these dissolve salt in water in proportion as given 
above. 

One white muslin 24-inch triangular bandage, for arm sling 
or chest, jaw, and head bandage. A man's large-sized 



What to Wear on the Trail 97 

white handkerchief can be used; never bind broken skin 
with colored cloth. 
One bottle of fly dope, warranted to keep off pestiferous 
flies and mosquitoes. All these may be kept in one-half 
of a linen case of pockets, your toilet articles in the other 
half, and the case can be opened out and hung to the 
side of your tent or shelter. 

Check List for General Camp 

Two basins, of light metal, paper or collapsible rubber. The 
last is easy to pack and light to carry. One basin will 
serve for several girls. If you camp near a body of fresh 
water let that be your basin; it will always be ready filled. 
No need then to bring water to your shelter, for a delight- 
ful dip in the river or lake every morning before break- 
fast will obviate all necessity, and do away with the 
otherwise needful hand-basin. 

One reliable map of location and surrounding country for 
constant reference. 

One water-pail, light weight, for every two or three girls. 
Can be canvas, aluminum, paper, rubber, or your own 
selection in other materials. 

Six toilet-paper packages or more. 

One or more tents of water-proof material. 

One or more sod cloths for tent flooring. 

One or more inner tents of cheesecloth for protection from 
mosquitoes, etc. These can be made at home or pur- 
chased with the tents at the regular camp-outfitters'. 
There is on the market a spray, claimed to be absolutely 
effective against mosquitoes, etc., and to keep both tent 
and camp free from pests. One quart is said to last 
two weeks with daily use. Cost, fifty cents per quart. 

One carborundum stone for sharpening all cutting tools. 

One or more lanterns. Folding candle lanterns may be pur- 
chased, but the simple ten-cent kind with lamp-chimney 
for protection of candle are good. They can be had at 
country stores in Cresco, Pa. May possibly be found at 
camp-outfitters'. If a glass chimney is to be used, pack 



98 On the Trail 

most carefully. Fill the inside of the chimney with 
stockings, handkerchiefs, etc. ; then wrap the chimney all 
over with other soft clothing and tie securely. Have 
this outside wrap very thick. 

One package of one-half length candles to use in lantern. 

One tin box of one or two dozen safety-matches. Tin will 
not catch fire from the matches. 

One strong tool-bag with separate labelled pockets for dif- 
ferent tools; each pocket with flap to fasten securely 
with dress snaps. In this tool-bag put assorted nails, 
mostly big, strong ones, screws, awl, well-sealed bottle 
of strong glue, ball of stout twine, a few rawhide thongs, 
three or four yards of soft strong rope, a pair of scissors, 
two spools of wire, and several yards of cheesecloth. 

One rope — ^long for mountain-climbing. 

Check List of Kitchen Utensils 

Two dish-pans, one for piping-hot sudsy water for washing 
dishes, the other for scalding-hot rinsing water. The 
last pan can also be used for mixing and bread-making. 
Select pans strong and of light weight — canvas, alumi- 
num, or tin — and be sure they nest or fold. 

Two water-pails, fitted one within the other, both light 
weight. 

One coffee-pot, size to fit in pails, must not be too high. 
Cocoa can be made in the coffee-pot. 

One frying-pan, for corn-dodgers, flapjacks, fried mush, eggs, 
etc. 

One folding camp-oven, for hot biscuits, bread puddings, 
and many other good things relished by hungry campers. 

One wash-basin, to be kept strictly for washing hands, when 
cooking. 

One large spoon, for stirring and general use. 

One kitchen-knife, suitable for cutting bread, carving meat, 
turning pancakes, etc. 

One kitchen-fork, strong and big, but not a toasting-fork. 

One Dutch oven pot, a strong seamless pot with cover, to 
use for baking, boiling, and stewing. 



What to Wear on the Trail 99 

Three dish-towels, washed after every meal. 

One dish mop or cloth, washed and dried after each meal; 
dry in sun when possible. 

Four large cakes of soap. 

One thick holder, for lifting pots. Hang this up in a certain 
place where it may always be found when needed. 

One pepper and one salt shaker, small and light in weight. 

One net air-bag, for meat, fish, and anything that must be 
kept fresh (Fig. 33) and protected from the flies. Use 
strong net and two or more hoops for the air-bag. With 
pincers you can twist the two ends of strong wire to- 
gether and make the hoops of size large enough to hold 
the net out away from a large piece of meat. Cut the 
net long enough to stand above and hang below the 
meat. Gather the top edge tightly together and sew 
it fast; then sew the hoop near the top of the bag. 
Other hoops on either side of centre of bag and a hoop 
near bottom of bag, or sew only one hoop at the top 
and one at the bottom. Have strong draw-strings in 
the bottom of the bag, and fasten a pendent hook 
at the top to hold the meat hanging free inside of the 
bag. With copper wire attach a good-sized ring on top 
of the bag, wire it through the handle of the pendent 
hook and weld them together. When in use, the bag 
should be suspended high from the ground by means 
of a rope pulley run through the top ring and over the 
limb of a near-by tree. Similar air-bags can be obtained, 
if desired, from camp-outfitters. 

When selecting cooking utensils for the camp, you will 
find those with detachable handles pack better and for 
that reason are desirable. 

Do not forget that every check-list given may be re- 
duced; don't think you must include all the items. For 
these lists give outfits for permanent as well as temporary 
camps. If you can manage with one towel by washing 
it every day, or evening, allowing it to dry during the 
night, one towel will be sufficient; leave the others at 



100 On the Trail 

home. Drop from the various lists every article you can 
possibly dispense with and still be comfortable in camp. 
If you wear the camp suit travelling from home to 
camp, its weight and bulk will be omitted from your camp 
pack, and be so much to your gain, and you will main- 
tain a good appearance notwithstanding, for if well made 
and of proper fit the dress will be a suitable travelling 
costume. 

Camp Packs 

When you intend carrying your belongings and strik- 
ing the trail either part or all the way to camp, the easiest 
method for portage is to stow the things in a regular 
pack and fasten the pack on your back by means of 
strong, long straps attached to the pack, and passed over 
your shoulders and under your arms. 

A square of water-proof canvas makes a simple and 
good camp pack. Get a nine-by-nine-feet (more or less) 
square of cloth, and it will be found useful as shelter, fly, 
ground-cloth, windbreak, and in other ways after reaching 
camp. 

What to Put in Your Pack 

Open out your pack-cloth flat on the floor, and place 
your folded mattress-bag in the centre. 

Fill the pillow-bag with your first-aid case and case of 
toilet articles, and if there is space for other things pack 
them in. Lay the pillow-bag on top of the mattress-bag, 
place clothing by the side and on top of the pillow-bag, 
being careful to keep the contents of your pack rectangu- 
lar in shape and of size to fit well over your back. 

If not adding too much to the weight, include many 
things from your personal-belonging list; of these articles 
you can carry some in the pockets of your camp suit. 







Some things to carry and how to carry them. 



10£ On the Trail 

Everything being in the pack, fold over the sides and 
ends, making a neat, compact bundle; tie it securely with 
a piece of soft rope and across its top place the blankets 
with poncho inside, which you have previously made into 
a roll to fit. Bind pack and blankets together, attach 
the pack shoulder-strap and swing the pack on your 
back. 

Pack straps or harness can be obtained at any camp- 
outfitter's. 

A different style of pack may be a bag with square 
corners, all seams strongly stitched, then bound with 
strong tape. Cut two pieces of the water-proof cloth, 
one about sixteen inches wide, and the other eighteen 
inches; this last is for the front and allows more space. 
Let each piece be twenty- one inches long or longer, unite 
them with a strip of the cloth six inches wide and suffi- 
ciently long to allow of flaps extending free at the top to 
fold over from both sides across the opening; you will 
then have a box-like bag. Make one large flap of width 
to fit the top of the back, and length to cross over on front, 
covering the smaller flaps and fastening down on the 
outside of the front of the pack. All three flaps may have 
pockets to hold small articles. 

The shoulder-straps may be either of strong government 
webbing which comes for the purpose, tube lamp-wick, 
or leather. 

With this pack the blanket and poncho could be made 
into a thin roll and fitted around the edges of the pack, 
or made into a short roll and attached to top of pack. 

^When feasible it is a good plan to pack your smaller 
belongings in wall-pockets with divisions protected by flaps 
securely fastened over the open ends, the wall-pockets 
rolled, tied, and carried in the camp pack. These pockets 
are useful at camp; they help to keep your things where 
you can find them. Next best is to use small separate 



What to Wear on the Trail 103 

labelled bags for different variety of duffel, and pack them 
in one or two duffel tube-shaped bags, which may be 
bound together, constituting one pack. 

From eighteen to twenty-four pounds is average weight 
for a girl to carry; it all depends upon strength and en- 
durance; some girls can carry even heavier packs, while 
others must have lighter ones. Beware about loading 
yourself down too heavily. Packs grow heavier and 
heavier, never lighter on the trail. 

Blanket-Roll Pack 

Side- trips from camp for only one night's bivouac will 
not need a back pack; the few articles required can be 
carried in your blanket-roll. Spread the poncho out flat, 
rubber side down, then your blankets on top, and group 
the things you intend to take into two separate oblong 
groups, one on each side of the central space at one end 
of the blankets; push the articles in each division closely 
together, leaving the space between the divisions empty. 
Kneel in front of your blankets and begin to roll all to- 
gether tightly, taking care not to allow any of the duffel 
to fall out. When the roll is complete, tie the centre with 
strong, soft string, and also each end, and make a hoop 
of the roll by tying together the hanging strings on the 
two ends. Wear the blanket-roll over left shoulder, diag- 
onally across back and chest to rest over right hip. If 
you have forgotten a few items, tie the things to the 
bottom of the blanket-roll and let them hang like tassels. 

Duffel-Bag 

Articles for general use while at camp can be packed 
together in one or more duffel-bags; if but one bag is 
needed, provisions might go in the same receptacle when 



104 On the Trail 

space and weight permit. It is much better, however, 
to have a separate bag for provisions. 

Packing Provisions 

You can make or buy separate tube bags of different 
heights, but all of the same diameter, and pack flour in 
one, corn-meal in another, and so on, having each bag 
labelled and all, when filled, fitted in one duffel-bag; you 
will find these bags a great comfort. They should be of 
water-proof canvas with draw-string at the top. You 
can purchase friction- top cans for butter, etc., of varying 
depth to accommodate different quantities which will fit 
well in the large provision bag. 

A duffel-bag is usually made cylindrical in form with 
a disk of the cloth sewed in tight at one end, and the other 
end closed with draw-strings. It is well to have another 
cloth disk attached to one spot at the top of the bag, to 
cover the contents before the draw-strings are fastened. 

A great variety of desirable camp packs, including duffel- 
bags, pack-straps, harness, and tump-lines, may be pur- 
chased at the camp-outfitter's; investigate before deciding 
upon home-made camp packs. Pack-baskets can also 
be obtained, but all the good-sized pack-baskets I have 
seen, while attractive in appearance, are too rigid, bulky, 
sharp-edged, and heavy to be of use to girl campers. 

Having decided that the wilderness is the place to 
locate, unless you can manage to camp with very little in 
the way of extra packs, you will be obliged to employ a 
guide to assist in the carry, possibly two guides, as wilder- 
ness trails do not permit of a vehicle, or even a mule or 
horse, being used to help in the portage. 

Should your camp be on a more accessible site, the 
easy portage can be taken advantage of and the problem 
readily solved; but the charm of the real forest camp with 



What to Wear on the Trail 105 

all its possibilities for genuine life in the wilderness more, 
far more, than compensates for the extra difficulties in 
reaching camp. Really, though, the very difficulties are 
but part of the sport; they give zest and add to the fun 
of the trail. 



CHAPTER V 

OUTDOOR HANDICRAFT 

Camp Furnishings — Dressing-Table, Seats, Dining-Table, Cup- 
board, Broom, Chair, Racks, Birch-Bark Dishes, etc. 

Camp is the place where girls enjoy most proving their 
powers of resourcefulness. 

It is fun to supply a want with the mere natural raw 
materials found in the open, and when you succeed in 
making a useful article of outdoor things, the entire camp 
takes a pride in your work and the simple but practical 
and usable production gives a hundred per cent more 
pleasure than could a store article manufactured for the 
same purpose. 

Be comfortable at camp. While it is good to live simply 
in the open, it is also good to be comfortable in the open, 
and with experience you will be surprised to find what a 
delightful life can be lived at camp with but few belong- 
ings and the simplest of camp furnishings. These last can, 
in a great measure, be made of tree branches and the 
various stuffs found in the woods. 

Dressing-Table 

A near-by tree will furnish the substantial foundation 
for your dressing-table and wash-stand combined. If 
you can find a side-piece of a wooden box, use it for the 
shelf and fasten this shelf on the trunk of a tree about 
two and one-half feet or more above the ground. Cut 
two rustic braces and nail the front of the shelf on the top 

106 




Wm^ mm^ 



Handicraft in the woods. 
Details of the outdoor dressing-table. Comb-racks of forked sticks and of split 

sticks. 



108 On the Trail 

ends of these supports; then nail a strip of wood across 
the tree as a cleat on which to rest the back of the shelf; 
fit the shelf on the cleat and nail the lower ends of the 
braces to the tree; strengthen the work still more by 
driving a strong, long nail on each side of the top centre 
of the back of shelf, diagonally down through the shelf, 
cleat, and into the tree. 

It is not essential that the straight shelf edge fit per- 
fectly to the rounded tree, but if you desire to have it so, 
mark a semicircle on the wood of size to fit the tree and 
whittle it out. 

Should there be no piece of box for your shelf, make 
the shelf of strong, slender sticks lashed securely close 
together on two side sticks. For cleats and braces use 
similar sticks described for board shelf. 

When the shelf is made in this way, cover the top with 
birch bark or other bark to give a flat surface. 

Hang your mirror on a nail in the tree at convenient 
distance above the shelf, and your tooth-brush on another 
nail. The towel may hang over the extending end of the 
cleat, and you can make a small bark dish for the soap. 
Your comb can rest on two forked-stick supports tacked 
on the tree, or two split-end sticks. 

Camp-Seats 

Stones, logs, stumps, raised outstanding roots of trees, 
and boxes, when obtainable, must be your outdoor chairs, 
stools, and seats until others can be made. 

Two trees standing near together may be used to ad- 
vantage as uprights for a camp seat. Cut a small hori- 
zontal kerf or notch at the same height on opposite sides 
of both trees, get two strong poles (green wood) , fit them 
in the wedges and nail them to the trees; then lash them 
firmly in place. Be absolutely certain that these poles 






-^ ^ 








/ \ 






ir 


/ \ 




1 




/ \ 


V 



Outdoor dressing-table, camp-cupboard, hammock-frame, seat, and pot-hook. 



110 On the Trail 

are of strong wood, firmly attached to the trees and not 
liable to slide or break. 

Make the seat by lashing sticks across from pole to 
pole, placing them close together. Two more long poles, 
fastened to the trees at a proper distance above the seat, 
would give a straight back, if a back is desired, but it is 
not essential; with a folded blanket spread over it, the 
seat alone is a luxury. 

Camp-Table 

A table can be built in much the same way as the seat 
and will answer the purpose well if one of boards is not 
to be had. For the table make your crosspieces about 
twenty-two inches long, nail them ladder-like but close 
together on two poles, and make this table top flat on 
the surface by covering it with birch bark tacked on 
smoothly. Having previously fastened two other poles 
across from tree to tree, as you did when making the seat, 
you can lift the table top and lay it on the two founda- 
tion poles; then bind it in place and the table will be 
finished. Another way of using the table top is to drive 
four strong, stout, forked sticks into the ground for the 
four table legs and place the table top across, resting the 
long side poles in the crotches of the stakes, where they 
may be lashed in place. 

Benches for the table can be made in like manner, only 
have the forked-stick legs shorter, raising the seat about 
eighteen inches above the ground. 

Camp-Cupboard 

A cupboard made of a wooden box by inserting shelves, 
held up by means of cleats, will be found very convenient 
when nailed to a tree near the cook-fire. Hang a door 




.jniD^ 





Camp-chair, biscuit-stick, and blanket camp-bed. 




112 On the Trail 

on the cupboard 'which will close tight and fasten securely. 
Have this in mind when making out your check list, and 
add hinges, with screws to fit, to your camp tools. 

Camp-Broom 

With a slender pole as a handle, hickory shoots, or 
twisted fibre of inner bark of slippery-elm, for twine, and 
a thick bunch of the top branchlets of balsam, spruce, 
hemlock, or pine for the brush part, you can make a broom 
by binding the heavy ends of the branches tight to an 
encircling groove cut on the handle some three inches 
from the end. Cut the bottom of the brush even and 
straight. 

Camp-Chair 

If you have a good-size length of canvas or other strong 
cloth, make a camp-chair. For the back use two strong, 
forked stakes standing upright, and use two long poles 
with branching stubs at equal distance from the bottom, 
for the sides and front legs of the chair; in the crotches 
of these stubs the bottom stick on which the canvas strip 
is fastened will rest. 

Each side pole must be fitted into one of the forked 
high-back stakes, and then the top stick on the canvas 
strip must be placed in the same crotches, but in front 
of and resting against the side poles, thus locking the side 
poles firmly in place. 

To fasten the canvas on the two sticks, cut one stick 
to fit across the chair-back and the other to fit across the 
lower front stubs. Fold one end of the canvas strip over 
one stick and nail the canvas on it, so arranging the cloth 
that the row of nails will come on the under side of the 
stick. Turn in the edge first that the nails may go through 
the double thickness of cloth. Adjust this canvas-cov- 



Outdoor Handicraft 113 

ered stick to the top of the chair, allowing the cloth to 
form a loose hanging seat; measure the length needed 
for back and seat, cut it off and nail the loose end of the 
canvas strip to the other stick; then fit one stick in the 
top of the upright back stakes and the other stick in the 
bottom stubs. 

Camp Clothes-Press 

If you are in a tent tie a hanging pole from the tent 
ridge-pole, and use it as a clothes-press. 



Blanket Bed 

Two short logs will be required for your blanket bed, 
the thicker the better, one for the head and one for the 
foot, also two long, strong, green-wood poles, one for 
each side of the bed; your blanket will be the mattress. 

Fold the blanket, making the seam, formed by bring- 
ing the two ends together, run on the under-side along 
the centre of the doubled blanket, not on the edge. Lap 
and fasten the blanket ends together with large horse- 
blanket safety-pins, and with the same kind of pins make 
a case on each side of the blanket fold; then run one of 
the poles through each case. Chop a notch near each 
end of the two short logs; in these notches place the ends 
of the poles and nail them securely. Have the short logs 
thick enough to raise the bed up a few inches from the 
ground, and make the notches sufficiently far apart to 
stretch the mattress out smooth, not have it sag. A strip 
of canvas or khaki may be used in place of the blanket 
if preferred. 

Camp Hammock 

By lashing short crosspieces to the head and foot of 
the side poles the blanket mattress can be a hammock 



114 On the Trail 

and swing between two trees, having been attached to 
them with rope or straps of slippery-elm, beech, or black 
birch. 

Birch-Bark Dishes 

It will be easy for girls to make their birch-bark dinner 
plates, vegetable dishes, baskets, dippers, etc. Soften the 
thick bark by soaking it in water; when it is pliable cut 
one plate the size you wish, lay it on a fiat stone or other 
hard substance and scrape off the outside bark around 
the edges, allowing the outer bark to remain on the bottom 
of the plate to give greater strength; use this plate as a 
guide in cutting each of the others. 

With your fingers shape the edges of the plates in an 
upward turn while the bark is wet, using the smoothest 
side for the inside of the plate. 

A large bark cornucopia with bark strap-handle can 
be made and carried on the arm in place of a basket when 
off berrying. 

Variations of circular, oblong, and rectangular bark 
dishes may be worked out from strips and rectangular 
pieces of birch bark, and all dishes can be turned into 
baskets by adding handles. When necessary to sew the 
edges of bark together, always have the bark wet and 
soft; then lap the edges and use a very coarse darning- 
needle with twine of inner-bark fibre or rootlets; have 
ready hot melted grease mixed with spruce gum to coat 
over the stitching and edges of the article, or you can 
use white-birch resin for the same purpose. 

The bark utensils will wear longer if a slender rootlet 
or branchlet of pliable wood is sewed, with the " over- 
and-over " stitch, to the edge of the article. 

For round and oblong dishes or baskets, sew together 
the two ends of your strip of wet bark; then sew the round 
or oblong bottom on the lower edge of the bark circle. In 



...,....'U... ..-. -.- ...>..^'.. , . ... 

' » I \ 

' I I ^ 

i. ! ! 2 




The birch-bark dish that will hold fluids. Details of making. 



116 On the Trail 

this case it is not easy to lap the edges, simply bring them 
together and finish the seam with the addition of the 
slender rootlet binding. 

Rectangular dishes are made by folding the wet bark 
according to the diagrams and fastening the folds near 
the top of both ends of the receptacle. These will hold 
Hquids. 

Cooking Utensils 

A forked stick with points sharpened makes a fine 
toasting-fork or broiling-stick for bacon or other small 
pieces of meat. The meat is stuck on the two prongs and 
held over the fire. 

A split-end stick may be used for the same purpose by 
wedging the bacon in between the two sides of the split. 

Your rolling-pin can be a peeled, straight, smooth, 
round stick, and a similar stick, not necessarily straight 
but longer, may do duty as a biscuit baker when a strip 
of dough is wound spirally around it and held over the 
fire. 

A hot flat stone can also be used for baking biscuits, 
and a large flat-topped rock makes a substitute for table 
and bread-board combined. 

If you have canned goods, save every tin can when 
empty, melt off the top, and with nail and hammer punc- 
ture a hole on two opposite sides near the top, and fasten 
in a rootlet handle. These cans make very serviceable 
and useful cooking-pails. 

Whittle out a long-handled cake-turner from a piece of 
thin split wood, and also whittle out a large flat fork. 

Make a number of pot-hooks of different lengths, they 
are constantly needed at camp; select strong green sticks 
with a crotch on one end and drive a nail slantingly into 
the wood near the bottom of the stick on which to hang 



Outdoor Handicraft 117 

kettles, pots, etc. Be sure to have the nail turn up and 
the short side of the crotch turn down as in diagram. 

Campers employ various methods of making candle- 
sticks. One method is to lash a candle to the side of the 
top of a stake driven into the ground, or the stake can 
have a split across the centre of the top, and the candle 
held upright by a strip of bark wedged in the split with a 
loop on one side holding the candle and the two ends of 
the bark extending out beyond the other side of the stake. 
Again the candle is stuck into a little mound of clay, mud, 
or wet sand. If you have an old glass bottle, crack off 
the bottom by pouring a little water in the bottle and 
placing it for a short while on the fire embers; then plant 
your candle in the ground and slide the neck of the bottle 
over the candle. Steady it by planting the neck of the 
bottle a little way in the ground and the glass bottle will 
act as a windbreak for your candle. 

Never leave a candle burning even for a moment unless 
some one is present; it is a dangerous experiment. Fire 
cannot be trifled with. Fut out your candle before 
leaving it. 

A good idea before going away from camp when vaca- 
tion is over is to photograph all the different pieces of 
your outdoor handicraft, and when the prints are made 
label each one with the month, date, and year and state 
material used, time required in the making, and comments 
on the work by other camp members. 

Be sure to take photographs of different views of the 
camp as a whole, also of each separate shelter, both the 
outside and the inside, and have pictures of all camp 
belongings. 

The authors will be greatly interested in seeing these. 



CHAPTER VI 

MAKING FRIENDS WITH THE OUTDOOR FOLK 

In the Woods, the Fields, on the Shore. Stalking Animals 
and Birds 

There is but one way to make friends with the folk 
of the wild, and that is by gentleness, kindness, and quiet- 
ness. Also one must learn to be fearless. It is said that 
while animals may not understand our language they 
do understand, or feel, our attitude toward them; and if 
it is that of fear or dislike we stand little chance of really 
knowing them, to say nothing of establishing any kind 
of friendly relations with them. By quiet watchfulness, 
keenness of sight and hearing, you may obtain a certain 
amount of knowledge of their ways, but when you add 
real sympathy and kindly feeling you gain their confidence 
and friendship. Make them understand that you will 
not interfere with or harm them, and they will go about 
their own affairs unafraid in your presence. Then you 
may silently watch their manner of Hving, their often 
amusing habits, and their frank portrayal of character. 
As a guest in the wild, conducting yourself as a courteous 
guest should, you will be well treated by your wild hosts, 
some of whom, in time, may even permit you to feed and 
stroke them. They do not dislike but fear you; they 
would rather be your friends than your enemies. The 
baby animal which has not yet learned to fear a human 
being will sometimes, when in danger, run to you for pror 
tection. This must win your heart if nothing else can. 

119 



Making Friends with Outdoor Folk 121 



Stalking 

You may stalk an animal by remaining quiet as well 
as by following its trail. To even see some of the inhabi- 
tants of woods, fields, and shore you must be willing to 
exercise great patience and conform to their method of 
hiding by remaining absolutely still. It is the thing that 
moves that they fear. Some of the animals appear not 
even to see a person who remains motionless. At any 
rate, they ignore him as they do a stump or stone. 

For this quiet stalking, find as comfortable a seat as 
you can where you have reason to think some kind of 
animal or animals will pass and resign yourself to im- 
movable waiting. If the rock beneath you grows unrea- 
sonably hard or the tree roots develop sharp edges, or 
the ground sends up unnoticed stones of torment; if your 
foot ''goes to sleep" or your nose itches, bear the annoy- 
ances bravely and your reward will be sure and ample. 
If the wait is unduly long and movement of some kind 
becomes imperative, let such movement be made so 
slowly as to be almost imperceptible. Remember that 
unseen, suspicious eyes will be attracted by any sudden 
action and the faintest sound will be heard, for these spell 
danger to the wilderness folk and if frightened away they 
are not apt to return. 

Keep your ears open to detect the first sound of ap- 
proaching life. There is a thrill in this experience, and 
another when the animal you have heard comes boldly 
out before you. Then it is you will find that, in some mys- 
terious way, all bodily discomfort has vanished. Your 
whole being is absorbed in the movements of the creature 
who is unconscious of your presence, and there is no room 
for other sensations. More animals may appear and per- 
haps a little drama may be enacted as if for your benefit. 



Making Friends with Outdoor Folk 123 

It may be a tragedy, it may be a comedy, or it may be 
only a bit of every-day family life; but you do not know 
the plot nor how many actors will take part, and your 
very uncertainty adds zest to the situation. 



Animals Found on the Trail 

The animals most frequently seen in the woods where 
there is no longer any large game are the chipmunk, the 
red, the gray, and the black squirrel, the rabbit and hare, 
the fox, weasel, pine-marten, woodchuck, raccoon, opos- 
sum, and skunk, also the pack-rat (of the west), the white- 
footed and field mouse. In deeper and wilder forests there 
are deer and porcupine, though deer are found quite near 
habitations at times. In more remote places there are 
the moose and caribou; the bear, mountain-lion, lynx or 
wildcat, and the timber-wolf. The wolf is, however, 
equally at home in the open and at this day is most plen- 
tiful on the wide plains of the west. Unless your trail 
leads through the remote wilderness, you will hardly come 
across the more savage animals, and when you do invade 
their territory it will give you greater courage to call 
to mind the fact that they, as well as the smaller wild 
things, are afraid of man. Our most experienced hunters 
and our best writers on the subject of animal life agree 
that a wild animal's first emotion upon seeing a human 
being is undoubtedly fear. When you come upon one 
suddenly you may feel sure that he is as much frightened 
as you are and will probably turn aside to avoid you un- 
less he thinks you are going to attack him. All wild 
creatures are afraid of fire, therefore the camp-fire is a 
barrier they will not pass, and a blazing firebrand will 
drive any of them away. 



Making Friends with Outdoor Folk 125 



Birds 

Among the feathered tribes of the woods you will find 
the owl, the w^oodcock, and the grouse. Of the smaller 
birds, the nuthatch, the wood and hermit thrush, whip- 
poorwill, woodpeckers, w^ood-pewee, and others. Most 
of the birds prefer the edge of the woods, w^here they can 
dip into the sunshine and take long flights through the 
free air of the open; but the hermit-thrush, shyest and 
sweetest of singers, makes his home deep in the silent, 
shadowy forest. In these depths, and oftenest near a 
bog or marsh, you may also hear the call of the partridge, 
or more properly, the ruffed grouse. As given by the 
writer William J. Long, the call is like this: 

"Prut, prut, pr-r-r-rt! Whit-kwit? Pr-r-r-rt, pr-r- 
r-rt ! Ooo-it, ooo-it? Pr-r-reeeel" 

Or perhaps you will be startled by the rolling drum- 
call. This begins slowly, increases rapidly, and ends some- 
thing like this: "Dum! dum I dum ! dum-dum-dum- 
dumdumdum!" The drum-call is made by the male 
bird who, beating the air wdth his wings, produces the 
sound. It is said to be a mating-call, but is heard at other 
times as well, long after the mating-season is over. 

Stalking the Ruffed Grouse 

If you want to see the birds, stalk them when you hear 
their call. Wait until you locate the direction of the 
sound, then walk silently and follow it. As soon as the 
birds are sighted slip from one tree to another, stopping 
instantly when you think they may see you, until you 
can conceal yourself behind a bush, tree, or stump near 
enough for you to peer around and have a good view of 
your game. It may sometimes be necessary to drop to 



Making Friends with Outdoor Folk 127 

your knees in order to keep out of sight. If you have 
heard the drum it is the cock that you have stalked and, 
if early in the season, you will soon see his demure little 
mate steal through the underbrush to meet her lordly 
master as he stands proudly on an old log awaiting her. 
The ''whit-kwit" call may lead you to the hen grouse 
with her brood of little chicks which are so much the 
color of the brown leaves you will not see them until 
they move. If the call comes later in the year you may 
come upon a flock of well-grown young birds who have 
left their mother and are now following a leader. 

The ruffed grouse is a beautiful bird. He is yellowish- 
brown or rusty, splashed with black or dark brown, 
and white, with under-parts of a light buff. His beak is 
short and on his small, dainty head he carries his crest 
proudly. His shoulders bear epaulets of dark feathers, 
called the ruff, and his fan-like tail is banded and cross- 
barred. The nest of the grouse is on the ground, usually 
against a fallen log, at the foot of a tree, or in a hollow 
made by the roots; or it may be hidden amid underbrush. 
It is easily overlooked, being made of dry leaves with, 
perhaps, some feathers. In the season it contains from 
eight to fourteen eggs. 

Woodcock 

The woodcock, another forest bird, seldom shows him- 
self in broad daylight except when hunted; then he will 
rise a few feet, fly a short distance, drop and run, hiding 
again as quickly as he can. You will know the woodcock 
from the ruffed grouse by his long hill, his short legs, and 
his very short tail. He frequents the banks of wooded 
streams or the bogs of the forests and, like the grouse, 
nests on the ground; but the woodcock's nest seldom 
contains more than four eggs. 



Making Friends with Outdoor Folk 129 



Beaver 

Along the shores of sluggish streams, of lonely lakes 
and ponds, you may see the beaver, the muskrat, very 
rarely the otter, and sometimes an ugly little, long- 
bodied animal belonging to the marten family called the 
fisher. These are all interesting, each in its own way, 
and well worth hours of quiet observation. The beaver, 
otter, and fisher choose wild, secluded places for their 
homes, but the muskrat may be found also in the marshes 
of farm lands. On the edges of our Long Island meadows 
the boys trap muskrats for their skins. 

You will find the beaver house in the water close to 
the shore and overlapping it. Though strongly and care- 
fully built, it looks very much like a jumble of small drift- 
wood, with bleached sticks well packed together, and the 
ends standing out at all angles. The sticks are stripped 
of their bark and the house gleams whitely against the 
dark water. The houses vary in size, some being built 
as high as five feet. The beaver is rarely seen early in 
the day, most of his work is done at night, so the best 
time to watch for him is just before dusk or perhaps an 
hour before sundown. It is not well to wait to see the 
beaver if your trail back to camp is a long one, leading 
through dense forests. You would far better postpone 
making its acquaintance than to risk going over the, 
perhaps, treacherous paths after dark. Night comes 
early in the woods and darkness shuts down closely while 
it is still light in the open. If your camp is near the beaver 
house or beaver dam, or if your trip can be made by 
water, then, with no anxiety about your return, you can 
sit down and calmly await the coming of this most skil- 
ful of all building animals, and may see him add material 
to his house, or go on with his work of cutting down a tree, 
as a reward for your patience. 



130 On the Trail 



Fish-Hawk, Osprey 

On the shore you will also find the fish-hawk, or osprey; 
a well-mannered bird he is said to be, who fishes diligently 
and attends strictly to his own business. The fish-hawk's 
nest will generally be at the top of a dead tree where no 
one may disturb or look into it, though, as the accom- 
panying photograph shows, it is sometimes found on rocks 
near the ground. The young hawks have a way of their 
own of defending themselves from any cHmbing creature, 
and to investigators of the nest the results are disastrously 
disagreeable as well as laughable. As the intruder climbs 
near, the baby birds put their heads over the sides of the 
nest and empty their stomachs upon him. This is vouched 
for by a well-known writer who claims to have gone 
through the experience. 

The female osprey is larger and stronger than the male. 
On slowly moving wings she sails over the water, drop- 
ping suddenly to clutch in her strong talons the fish her 
keen eyes have detected near the surface of the water. 
Fish are fish to the osprey and salt waters or fresh are 
the same to her. I have watched the bird plunge into the 
waves of the ocean, on the coast of Maine, to bring out 
a cunner almost too large for her to carry, and I have 
seen her drop into the placid waters of an Adirondack 
lake for lake-trout in the same manner. 



Blue Heron 

The great blue heron is one of the shore folk and his 
metallic blue-gray body gleams in the sunlight, as you 
sight him from your canoe, standing tall and slim, a 
lonely figure on the bank. He flies slowly and majestically, 
with his long legs streaming out behind. When out in 
a small boat on Puget Sound a large heron escorted us 



132 On the Trail 

some distance. As we rowed near the shore he would fly 
ahead and then wait for us, standing solemnly on a stone 
in the water or a partially submerged log, to fly again 
as we approached. 

This escort business seems to be a habit of the heron 
family, for the same thing occurred on the Tomoca River, 
Fla., the home of the alligator, when a small, brilliantly 
blue heron flew ahead of our boat for several miles, al- 
ways stopping to wait for us, and then going on again. 

The heron is a fisher and when you see him standing 
close to the water, on one foot perhaps, he is awaiting 
his game. It matters not how long he must remain im- 
movable, there he will 'stand until the fish comes within 
striking distance, when the long, curved neck will shoot 
out like a snake and the strong beak grasp its unwary 
prey. 

Loon, Great Northern Diver 

Another interesting bird, which you may both hear and 
see on secluded lakes, is the loon or great northern diver. 
I first heard the wild cry of the loon, a lonesome and eerie 
sound, on Pine River Pond, a small lake in the foot-hills 
of the White Mountains. There I saw the great bird 
dive and disappear beneath the water to remain an 
alarmingly long time, and then come up several hundred 
yards away, and rising, fly slowly to the shore. It is 
always a matter for guessing when the loon dives, for you 
can never tell where she wfll come up. This great diver 
is a large black-and-white bird, about the size of a goose. 
The breast is white, head black, and a white ring encircles 
its 'black neck. Its beak is long, its legs very short and 
placed far back on the body. It is essentially a water- 
bird, and on shore is both slow and awkward. I do not 
think it possible to become very intimate with the loon, 
for it is one of the wfldest of our birds, and so suspicious 



Making Friends with Outdoor Folk 133 

it will allow no close approach, but quiet watching will 
reveal many of its interesting characteristics. Some one 
once found the nest of a loon and brought me a little, 
downy, young one that I might try to tame it; but it lived 
only a day or two in spite of all the devotion expended 
upon it, and its wild, frightened cry was too pathetic to 
allow of another experiment of the kind. 

Animals and Birds of the Open 

You will find that the wild life of the open differs in 
some respects from that of the woods, though there will 
be the woodchuck, the rabbit, the fox, and the hare in the 
fields and farm lands as well as in the woods. The weasel, 
too, makes unwelcome visits to the farm, but besides these 
there are other animals that are seldom or never found 
in the woods. 

Field-Mouse 

There is the little field-mouse, a short-eared and short- 
tailed little creature with a thick neck and of a red-brown 
color. It feeds on grain and seeds, and when hard 
pressed for food will also eat the bark of trees. 

Kangaroo-Rat, Jumping Mouse 

In the underbrush near a meadow and at the edges of 
thickets you may possibly see, though they are not com- 
mon, a diminutive animal, beautiful in form and color and 
of most interesting habits. In the Southwest it is called 
the kangaroo-rat, but North and East it is known as the 
jumping mouse. The name kangaroo-rat is given because 
of its short fore legs, strong hind legs, and the kangaroo- 
like leaps it makes. In temper it is very unlike the ordi- 
nary rat; it does not bite and can be safely handled, but 
will not live if kept in captivity. 



134 On the Trail 



Pocket-Gopher 

The pocket-gopher lives and burrows in the fields. It is 
a mole-like animal but much larger than the common 
mole. Its legs are short and its front feet strong, with 
long nails for digging. The fur is soft and silky and dark 
brown in color. Where the gopher is there may be found 
the weasel, his greatest enemy. It should be an even fight 
between them, for they are equally matched in ill-temper 
and savageness, and are near of a size though the gopher 
is the heavier. 

Antelope 

On the great plains of the west you may still see the 
beautiful and gentle antelope, though that animal is fast 
disappearing, while the thieving coyote thrives and mul- 
tiplies in the same region. 

Coyote, Prairie- Wolf 

The coyote, or prairie-wolf, is about the size of a large 
dog and resembles one. Its color is gray, made by a mix- 
ture of black and white hairs. It is a cowardly animal 
and not dangerous, but its contemptible character could 
not prevent a wave of compassion that came over me when 
I saw one poor creature caged in a wooden box and hold- 
ing up the bloody stump where its fore foot had been torn 
off by the cruel and barbarous steel trap. 

Spermophile 

In the Middle West, especially in Indiana, the little 
spermophile, sometimes called the ground-squirrel, is 
common and not afraid to venture into the outskirts of a 
village. One variety wears spotted brown and yellow 
stripes down its back, another is gray, but all are about 




. \^i-^i 




136 On the Trail 

the size of a gray squirrel. On the western prairies are 
the comical little prairie-dogs. You can see them sitting 
up on their haunches watching the train as it carries you 
over the great plains. 

Bobolink 

The birds of the open are varied and many. Most of 
the forest birds are seen occasionally in the fields, but 
some birds make their homes in the open. You will find 
the bobolink's nest in a hay-field or down among the red 
clover. The bobolink of the north is a sweet singer and 
is pretty in his black and white feathers with a touch of 
yellow at the back of his head. There are creamy-yellow 
feathers down his back, too, but they are not noticeable. 
When he goes south the male loses his pretty coat and, 
clad like his mate in yellowish-brown, is known as the 
rice-bird because he feeds on the rice crops. Here he is 
killed because he is considered a robber, and eaten be- 
cause he is considered a delicacy. 

Meadow-Lark 

Early spring trailing through the meadows will bring 
you the cheery song of the meadow-lark: " Spring-o-the- 
year!" Stalk him carefully and you will find a large 
brown bird with yellow breast and a black crescent on 
his throat. The meadow-lark is about the size of a quail. 
He stands erect when he sings, and he has a rather long 
beak. The nest can be found, if you look for it, but is 
generally out of sight under a loosened clod of earth or 
tuft of grass. 

Red-Winged Blackbird 

The red- winged blackbird with his sweet call of " 0-ka- 
lie," or " Ouchee-la-ree-e ! " you will also find on the 



^ 



Making Friends with Outdoor Folk 137 

meadows and marshes. He builds his nest among the 
reeds and is one of the first of our spring birds in the 
north. 

Song Sparrow 

The httle song sparrow loves the open and the hot sum- 
mer sunshine. Trailing along a country road at mid- 
day, when most of the other birds are still, you will find 
the song sparrow sitting on a rail fence singing with un- 
diminished enthusiasm. 

To make friends with the birds provide food and water 
for them, then sit down and wait quietly until they ap- 
pear. Let them become accustomed to seeing you sitting 
still every day for a while, then begin slow, careful move- 
ments, gradually becoming more natural, and in time the 
birds will allow you to walk among them as you please, 
if you are careful never to frighten them. You can do 
this in camp ; you can do it at home if you are not living 
in a city. The trustful friendship of animals and birds 
opens a new path of happiness and one that all girls should 
be able, in some measure, to enjoy. 



CHAPTER VII 

WILD FOOD ON THE TRAIL 

Edible Fruits, Nuts, Roots, and Plants 

While wild foods gathered on the trail give a delightful 
variety to camp fare, be advised and do not gather, still 
less eat, them unless you are absolutely sure you know 
what they are and that they are not poisonous. You must 
be able to identify a thing with certainty before tasting in 
order to enjoy it in safety. It is well worth while to 
make a study of the wild-growing foods, but in the mean- 
time this chapter will help you to know some of them. 
The italicized names are of the things I know to he edible 
from personal experience. You are probably well ac- 
quainted with the common wild fruits such as the rasp- 
berry, strawberry, blackberry, blueberry, and huckle- 
berry, but there are varieties of these and all will bear 
description. 

Red Raspberry 

The wild berry often has a more delicious flavor and 
perfume than the cultivated one of the same species. 
Nothing can approach the wonderful and delicate flavor 
of the little wild strawberry, unless it is the wild red rasp- 
berry; and the fully ripe wild blackberry holds a spicy 
sweetness that makes the garden blackberry taste tame 
and flat in comparison. 

The wild red raspberry is found in open fields and 
growing along fences and the sides of the road. The 
flowers are white and grow in loose clusters, while the 
berry, when fully ripe, is a deep, translucent red. The 

138 



Wild Food on the Trail 139 

bush is shrubby, is generally about waist-high, and the 
stems bear small, hooked prickles. The leaves are what 
is called compound, being composed of three or five 
leaflets, usually three, which branch out from the main 
stem like the leaves of the rose-bush. The edges of the 
leaves are irregularly toothed. 

The berry is cup-shaped and fits over a core which is 
called the receptacle, and from which it loosens when ripe 
to drop easily into your hand, leaving the receptacle and 
calyx on the stem. The sweet, far-carrying perfume of 
the gathered wild red raspberry will always identify it. 
The season for fruit is July and August. 

Black Raspberry 

The growth and leaves of the wild black raspberry are 
like those of the red raspberry, and it is found in the same 
localities. The fruit, like the other, is cup or thimble 
shaped and grows on a receptacle from which it loosens 
when fully ripe. Blackcaps, these berries are often called. 
They ripen in July. The berry is sometimes a little dry, 
but the flavor is sweet and fine. 

Purple-Flowering Raspberry 

The purple-flowering raspberry is acid and insipid; it 
can hardly be called edible, though it is not poisonous. 
You will find it clambering among the rocks on the moun- 
tainside and in rocky soil. The leaves are large and re- 
semble grape leaves, while the flower is large, purplish-red 
in color, and grows in loose clusters. 

Mountain Raspberry, Cloudberry 

The usual home of the mountain raspberry, or cloud- 
berry, is on the mountain-tops among the clouds. You 



140 On the Trail 

will find it in the White Mountains and on the coast of 
Maine, and it has recently been discovered at Montauk 
Point, L. I. The fruit has a pleasant flavor of a honey- 
like sweetness. The receptacle of the berry is broad and 
flat, the color is yellow touched with red where exposed to 
the sun. It does not grow in clusters like the other rasp- 
berries, but is solitary. The leaves are roundish with from 
five to nine lobes, something like the leaves of the gera- 
nium. The plant grows low, is without prickles, and the 
solitary flowers are white. In the far north, where it is 
found in great profusion, the cloudberry is made into de- 
licious jam. 

Wild Strawberry 

When crossing sandy knolls or open, uncultivated fields 
and pastures, the alluring perfume of the wild strawberry 
will sometimes lead you to the patch which shows the 
bright-red little berry on its low-growing plant. It is 
common everywhere, though it bears the name of wild 
Virginia strawberry. In Latin it is most appropriately 
called Fragaria, meaning fragrant. The leaves are com- 
pound with three coarsely toothed, hairy leaflets. The 
small white flowers grow in sparse clusters on rather long, 
hairy stems. They have many deep yellow stamens 
which are surrounded by the fine white petals. In fruit- 
ing time the leaves are often bright-red. 

Low Running Blackberry 

Among the mountains and hills, down in the valleys, 
and on the plains; straggling along roadsides, clinging to 
fence rails, and sprawling over rocks, you will find the 
wild blackberry. There are several varieties, and black- 
berries of some kind are common throughout the United 
States. 



Wild Food on the Trail 141 

The low running blackberry belongs to the dewberry 
type and bears the largest and juiciest berries. It is a 
trailing vine with compound leaves of from four to seven 
leaflets which are double-toothed. The berries are black 
and glossy and grow in small clusters. They are sweet 
and pulpy when thoroughly ripe and the best ones are 
those which ripen slowly under the shelter of the leaves. 

Blackberries grow on a receptacle or core, but unlike 
the raspberry, they do not separate from it. When ripe 
they drop easily from the calyx carrying the receptacle 
with them. The flowers are small and white, and grow 
in clusters. 

Running Swamp Blackberry 

Perhaps you have seen the blackberry with fruit so 
small it seems only partially developed and, like myself, 
have hesitated to taste it, not being sure that it was a 
true blackberry and edible. It takes a good many of 
these little berries to make a mouthful, but they are 
harmless. They are called the running swamp blackberry. 
They ripen in August and grow in sandy places as well 
as in the swamps. There are three leaflets, seldom more, 
to the stem, which are blunt at the tip, smooth, shining, 
and coarsely toothed. The flowers are small and white, 
and the stems prickly. 

High-Bush Blackberry 

Throughout the northern states as far west as Iowa, 
Kansas, and Missouri and down to North Carolina, you 
may find the high-bush blackberry. Its stems are sometimes 
ten feet high ; they are furrowed and thorny and the bush 
grows along country roads, by fences, and in the woods. 
The berries are sweet, but quite seedy. They grow in 
long, loose clusters and ripen in July. 



142 On the Trail 



Mountain Blackberry 

There is another variety called the mountain blackberry. 
It has a spicy flavor, but the fruit is small and dry. The 
leaves are more elongated toward the tip than those of 
the others and they are finely toothed. The branches are 
reddish in color. 

Thornless Blackberry 

The sweetest of all varieties is said to be the thornless 
blackberry. It ripens later than the others and has no 
thorns. The leaves are long and narrow. 

Eastern Wild Gooseberry 

Among the mountains from Massachusetts to North 
Carolina, the eastern wild gooseberry grows. It is said 
that its flavor is delicious. The fruit is purplish in color 
and is free from all prickles. It grows on slender stems 
and, like the cultivated gooseberry, is tipped with the 
dry calyx. The leaves are small, rather round, and have 
three or five lobes. The flowers are greenish and in- 
significant. The plant is three or four feet high, with 
spreading branches and smooth stems. 

Dwarf Blueberry 

Perhaps the most satisfactory of all berries when one is 
really hungry is the blueberry, of which there are several 
varieties. The dwarf blueberry is probably the most com- 
mon. It is the earliest of the blueberries to ripen and 
grows in the thin, sandy, and rocky soil which is spurned 
by most other plants. You will find it upon barren hill- 
sides, in rocky fields, and in dry pine woods. The berries 



144 On the Trail 

are round, blue, about the size of peas, and are covered 
with bloom like the grape. They grow in thick clusters 
at the end of the branch and are tipped with fine calyx 
teeth. The seeds are so small as to be almost unnoticed 
and the soft ripe berry will bruise easily. 

The flavor of all blueberries has a nutty quality which 
seems to give the berry more substance as a food. The 
leaf is rather narrow and pointed at each end; the under 
side is a lighter green than the upper and both are glossy. 
In the fall the leaves turn red and drop easily. The bush 
is low and the branches usually covered with small, white 
dots. 

Low Blueberry 

Another variety is called the low blueberry. It is very 
much like the dwarf blueberry, but the bush grows some- 
times as high as four feet. It is stiff and upstanding and 
prefers the edge of the woods and sheltered roadsides to 
the dry open fields. The berries are blue with a grape- 
like bloom and, like the first variety, grow in thick clusters 
at the end of the branch. You can grab a good handful 
in passing, so many are there in a bunch. 

High-Bush Blueberry 

On the high-bush blueberry the color of the berries varies. 
Some bushes bear a black, shiny berry, others a smooth, 
blue, and still others blue with a bloom. The sizes differ 
also. The berries grow in clusters, at times on branches 
almost bare of leaves; some are sweet, others sour. The 
leaves are a pointed oval wdth the under side lighter in 
color than the upper; in some cases the under side is 
hairy. The flowers are pinkish and shaped somewhat 
like a cylinder. The bush grows occasionally to the 
height of ten feet, and you will generally find it in marshy 



Wild Food on the Trail 145 

places. I know that it grows by the edge of Teedyus- 
kung Lake in Pike County, Pa., where our summer camp 
is located, but it is found also in pasturelands. 

Dangleberry 

Another variety is called the dangleberry. The berries 
grow on stems in loose clusters; they are rather large, of 
a dark-blue color with a bloom; they ripen late and are 
not very plentiful. The pale-green leaves are large, white, 
and resinous underneath, and are oval in shape. The 
flowers are greenish-pink and hang like bells on slender 
stems. 

Wintergreen. Checkerberry 

Almost every one knows the little cherry-red winter- 
green berry or checkerberry, and almost every one likes 
its sweet aromatic flavor but few would care to make a 
meal of it. The fruit is too dry for hearty eating and 
the flavor too decided. The evergreen leaves are leathery 
in texture and their flavor is stronger than that of the 
berry; they are whitish underneath and dark, glossy 
green above. They are oval in shape and have a few 
small teeth or none at all. The flowers are white, waxy, 
and cup-shaped; they hang like bells from their short 
stems. The plant grows close to the ground, generally 
in the woods and moist places. It is found as far north as 
Maine and west to Michigan. 

Do not mistake the bunchberry for the wintergreen. 
It, too, grows low on the ground, but the bunchberries 
are in close clusters at the top of the small plant where 
the leaves radiate. The berries are bright scarlet, round 
and smooth, and are not edible. Flower and leaf re- 
semble those of the dogwood- tree, to which family the 
bunchberry belongs. 



146 On the Trail 

Partridgeberry 

Another ground berry is the partridgeberry. This may 
be eaten but is dry and rather tasteless. It is a red 
berry and grows on a slender, trailing vine. Its leaves 
are small and heart-shaped; some are veined with white. 
They are evergreen. The flowers grow in pairs and are 
like four-pointed stars at the ends of slender tubes. In- 
side they are creamy white, outside a delicate pink. 
The partridgeberry likes pine forests and dry woods. 

June-Berry. Shadbush 

There are berries on trees as well as on bushes and 
vines, at least they are called berries though not always 
resembling them. 

The June-berry is a tree from ten to thirty feet in height, 
while its close relative, the shadbush, is a low tree and 
sometimes a shrub. The fruit resembles the seed-vessels 
of the rose; it grows in clusters and is graded in color 
from red to violet; it has a slight bloom and the calyx 
shows at the summit. It ripens in June and is said to 
be sweet and delicious in flavor. The oblong leaves are 
sharply toothed, rounded at the base and pointed at the 
tip. The young leaves are hairy. The flowers are white 
and grow in clusters. 

The shadbush grows in wet places and its fruit is 
smaller and on shorter stems. It is also said to be more 
juicy. The leaves are rather woolly. 

Red Mulberry 

Although the finest mulberry-trees are said to be found 
along the Mississippi and the lower Ohio Rivers, I have 
seen large, thrifty trees in Connecticut and on Long 
Island. They grow from Massachusetts to Florida and 




Fruits found principally in the south and the middle west. 



148 On the Trail 

west to Nebraska. Birds are very fond of the mulberry. 
The first rose-breasted grosbeaks I ever saw were in a 
great mulberry-tree on a farm in the northern part of 
Connecticut. The berry is shaped much like a black- 
berry; it is juicy and sweet, but lacks flavor. It grows 
on a short stem and is about an inch in length. In July 
when the berry ripens it is a dark purple. 

There is a decided variety in the shape of the leaves 
on one tree; some have seven lobes, some none at all. 
The edges of most are scalloped, though I have seen 
leaves with smooth edges. 

The white mulberry is seldom found growing wild. 
The fruit is like the red mulberry but perfectly white. 

Sweet Viburnum. Nanny-Berry. Sheepberry 

The fruit of the sweet viburnum, nanny-berry or sheep- 
berry, is said to be edible. It grows on a small tree, of 
the honeysuckle family, in the woods and by the streams 
from Canada to Georgia and west as far as Missouri. 
The tree has a rusty, scaly bark and broad, oval leaves, 
pointed at the tip and finely toothed. The flower clusters 
are large and, though white, they appear yellowish from 
the many yellow anthers at the centre. When entirely 
ripe the fruit is a dark blue or black and is covered with 
a bloom; before ripening it is crimson. The berry grows 
in clusters on slender red stems. It is elongated and rather 
large. At its summit is the calyx and stigma. The seed 
inside the berry is a stone which is flattened, blunt-point- 
ed, and grooved. The fruit ripens in September and 
October. 

Large-Fruited Thorn 

The thorns, large-fruited and scarlet, are edible. As 
a child I knew the fruit as haws and was very fond of it. 



Wild Food on the Trail 149 

The large-fruited thorn is a low tree with branches spread- 
ing out horizontally. You will often find it in thickets. 
The bark is rough and the thorns on the branches are 
long, sharp, and of a light-brown color. In flavor the 
fruit is sweet and apple-like; the flesh is dry and mealy; 
it grows on hairy stems and the seeds are hard, rounded, 
and grooved. The summit is tipped with the calyx and 
it ripens in September. The leaves are thick, narrowed 
at the base, and rounded at the ends, with veins under- 
neath that are prominent and often hairy. 

Black Haw. Stag-Bush 

The fruit of the black haw, or stag-bush, is not edible 
until after frost has touched it. It is oval, dark blue 
with bloom, and about half an inch long. It grows in 
stiff clusters on short, branching stems. The shrub, 
which is sometimes a small tree, is bushy and crooked, 
with stout and spreading branches. It is found from Con- 
necticut to Georgia and as far west as the Indian Territory. 
It grows among the underbrush in forests. The bark is 
scaly and of a reddish-brown color, the leaves are dark 
green and smooth on the upper side, paler and some- 
times covered with matted hair on the under side, where 
the veins show prominently; they are two or three inches 
long and generally oval in shape with no teeth. The 
flowers are cream-white and grow in fiat-topped clusters. 

Wild Plums. Canada Plum 

There is a wild plum that is found in our New England 
States and in Canada known as the Canada plum. The 
plant grows along fences, in thickets, and by the side of 
streams. The plum is from one inch to one and a half 
inches long and is red or orange in color. It has a tough 



150 On the Trail 

skin and a flat stone. The flavor is considered pleasant 
but the fruit is generafly used for preserving. The leaves 
have long, sharp points at the ends and are rather heart- 
shaped at the base. The flowers, white in bud, change 
to pink when opened. They grow in thin clusters. 

Beach Plum 

Usually on sandy and stony beaches, though at times 
farther inland, you may find the beach plum. It is a 
low shrub and grows in clumps. The fruit is apt to be 
abundant and is sweet when quite ripe. This plum, also, 
is used for preserving. The color of the fruit is from red 
to red-purple, it has a bloom over it and grows on a slen- 
der stem. The thin stone is rounded on one edge, sharp 
on the other, and generally has pointed ends. The fruit 
ripens in August and September. The leaf is oval, has a 
sharp-pointed tip, is rounded at the base, and has fine, 
forward-pointed teeth. There are many white flowers 
which grow in clusters along the branches. 

Wild Red Cherry 

The wild red cherry is sour but edible; it is best used 
as preserves. The tree is usually small yet sometimes 
reaches the height of thirty feet. It is oftenest found in 
the woods of the north, but also grows among the moun- 
tains as far south as Tennessee. The bark is a reddish- 
brown and has rusty dots over it. The leaves are oblong, 
pointed at the tips and rather blunt at the base. They 
are bright green and glossy. The white flower is much 
like the cultivated cherry blossom but smaller; it grows 
in clusters. The cherries are light red and about the size 
of a pea. 




C!an AOA FLuM 




\a/iudDl ackCh EF^r^; 



Fruits found principally in the north and the middle west. 



152 On the Trail 



Sand-Cherry 

Growing in the sand along our eastern coast as far 
south as New Jersey and sometimes on the shores of the 
Great Lakes, the sand-cherry is found. It is a low, trail- 
ing bush, but in some cases sends up erect branches as 
high as four feet. The fruit is dark red — black when 
quite ripe — and about half an inch long. It grows in 
small clusters or solitary, and is said to be sweet and 
edible. The leaves, dark green on the upper side, are 
lighter underneath; they are rather narrow, broadest 
toward the end and tapering at the base. The edge is 
toothed almost to the base. The flowers are white and 
thinly clustered. 

Persimmon 

In the Southern, Western, and Middle States, some say 
as far north as New York, grows the persimmon. Deli- 
ciously sweet and spicy when frost has ripened it, very 
astringent until ripe. It is plentiful in Kentucky and one 
of my earliest memories is of going to market with my 
mother in the fall to buy persimmons. There I learned 
to avoid the fair, perfect fruit, though to all appearances 
it was quite ripe, and to choose that which looked bruised 
and broken. 

The persimmon is about the size of a plum, but is flat- 
tened at the poles. It grows close to the branch and its 
calyx is large. The color is yellow generally flushed with 
red. Some writers describe it as juicy, but I would not 
call it that; the flesh is more like custard or soft jelly. 

The tree usually varies in height from thirty to fifty 
feet, but in some places is said to reach one hundred or 
more feet. The trunk is short and the branches spread- 



Wild Food on the Trail 153 

ing. In the south it often forms a thicket in uncultivated 
fields and along roadsides. The bark is dark brown or 
dark gray, the surface is scaly and divided into plates. 
The leaves are usually a narrow oval with smooth edges; 
when matured they are dark green and glossy on the upper 
side, underneath pale and often downy. The flower is a 
creamy- white or greenish-yellow. 

Papaw 

The papaw is another fruit I knew well as a child. It 
is sometimes called custard-apple because the flesh re- 
sembles soft custard. As I write I can almost taste the, 
to me, sickish sweetness of the fruit and feel the large, 
smooth, flat seeds in my mouth. In shape the papaw 
somewhat resembles the banana, the texture of the skin 
is the same,* but the surface of the papaw is smoothly 
rounded and it is shorter and thicker than the banana, 
being usually from three to five inches long. It ripens in 
September and October. The tree is small, often a shrub, 
and it grows wild no farther north than western New York. 

There are some cultivated papaw-trees on Long Island, 
but I do not think they bear fruit. Certainly none that 
I have seen have ever fruited. You will find the tree as 
far south as Florida and Texas, through the Middle States 
and west to Michigan and Kansas. It flourishes in the 
bottom lands of the Mississippi Valley and seeks the shade 
of the forests. The bark is dark brown with gray blotches ; 
the leaves are large, being from two to twelve inches long 
and four inches wide. They are oval, pointed at the tip 
and narrowed at the base. When matured they are 
smooth, dark green on the upper side and paler beneath. 
At first the flower is as green as the leaves, but finally 
turns a deep red-purple. It grows close to the branch 
and is solitary. 



154 On the Trail 



May-Apple 

One of the most delicious wild fruits we have is the 
May-apple or mandrake. It is finely flavored, sweet and 
juicy, but being a laxative one must eat of it sparingly. 
It is most common in the Middle States and reaches per- 
fection in Ohio. 

The plant is from twelve to eighteen inches high, and 
the large umbrella-like leaves are lifted on smooth, straight 
stems. The fruit usually grows from the fork of two 
leaves. It is yellow, lemon-shaped, and about the size of 
a plum. The flesh is like that of the plum and there are 
numerous seeds in fleshy seed coverings. It ripens in 
July and is quite soft when fully ripe. I have sometimes 
gathered the firm, yellow May-apples, put them away in 
a cool, dark, dry place to ripen, and in taking them out 
have found them in prime condition. They will ripen 
in this way without spoiling if not allowed to touch one 
another. 

The leaves frequently measure a foot in diameter; they 
have from five to nine lobes, which are notched and pointed 
at the tips; the upper side is darker than the lower. 
While the fruit of the May-apple is edible, the leaves and 
root are poisonous, not to the touch but to the taste. 
The flower is a clear white with from eight to twelve 
rounding petals and it generally measures about one and 
a half inches across. The petals expand in the morning, 
become erect in the afternoon, and close at night. We are 
told that the May-apple is a roadside plant, but I have 
found it only in the woods. 

Wild Grapes 

There are several varieties of wild grapes, all, I think, 
edible but not all pleasant to the taste. The fox-grape is 



156 On the Trail 

sweet, but has a musky flavor and odor, a thick skin, and 
a tough pulp. The fruit ripens in September but few 
care to eat it. The vine grows luxuriantly and is very 
common. The summer grape is another tough-skinned 
grape. It is not musky but is generally astringent. The 
vine resembles the fox-grape in growth, being strong and 
vigorous. The fruit of the blue grape is sour and hangs 
in long, heavy clusters. It is usually found along water- 
ways. 

Frost-Grape or Chicken-Grape 

If you try to eat the frost-grapes before frost you will 
find them decidedly sour, but after a good frost they are 
really fine. They have a snappy, spicy flavor all their 
own, and one eats them, like currants, skin and all. They 
are small, round, and black with a slight bloom. The 
clusters are well-filled and hang loosely. The vine grows 
luxuriantly, branching from a large trunk, and is found in 
wet places and on the banks of streams, though it does 
well in the open and in drier soil. It flourishes in New 
England and down to Illinois and westward to Nebraska. 
The leaves usually suggest three lobes but are mostly un- 
divided. They are coarsely toothed and the under side 
bears occasional hairs along the veins. 

Wild Nuts. Black Walnuts 

Of all the wild-growing foods, nuts are, perhaps, the 
most nutritious. The black walnut, not plentiful in the 
Atlantic States but abundant in the Middle States and 
in 'the Mississippi Valley, has a rich, wild flavor, and a 
deep-brown stain for the hands that tear it from its ball- 
like covering of tough, pimply green which forms the 
outer husk. The nut is sometimes oblong, sometimes 
almost round, with a deeply grooved, hard, brown shell. 



Wild Food on the Trail 157 

It grows in pairs or solitary. The tree is large, often reach- 
ing the height of one hundred feet, and its trunk is from 
four to six feet in diameter. The bark is dark brown 
with deep vertical grooves and its surface is broken with 
thick scales. The leaves are compound, growing on a 
middle stem which is sometimes two feet long. Each 
leaflet is a narrow oval, sharply pointed at the end, and 
usually about three inches long. The nuts require frost 
to ripen them. 

Butternut 

While the hutter nut-tree is much like the walnut in gen- 
eral appearance, it does not grow as large. The nuts are 
different in shape and in flavor, and the leaflets are hairy 
instead of smooth. The butternut does not grow as far 
north as the walnut, but is often found side by side with 
the walnut in the Middle States. The green outer cover- 
ing of the nut is oblong and sticky on the surface, and, 
like the walnut, will stain the hands. The shell is hard, 
brown, oblong, and pointed at one end. It is deeply 
grooved. The flavor is rich but the nut being oily soon 
becomes rancid. 

Hickory-Nuts 

In gathering hickory-nuts you must be able to distinguish 
between the edible variety and others that are fair on 
the outside but bitter within. There are nine varieties 
of hickory-nut trees, and in general appearance they are 
alike. All have compound leaves and the leaflets are 
larger and fewer to the stem than the walnut, usually 
numbering from five to eleven. The nuts grow in small 
clusters as a rule, often in pairs, and the outer husk sepa- 
rates when ripe into four pieces, allowing the nut to drop 
out clean and dry. The full-grown tree is of good size 
and is found almost everywhe.re in the United States. 



158 On the Trail 



Shellbark. Shagbark 

The shellbark or shagbark hickory-nut is one of the 
best. The flavor, as every one knows, is sweet and pleas- 
ant. It is the bark of the tree that gives it the name of 
shagbark, for it separates into long, ragged strips several 
inches wide which generally hold to the trunk at the 
middle and give it an unkempt, shaggy appearance. 

Mockernut 

The mockernut is the hickory-nut with a dark, brownish- 
colored shell, hard and thick and not easily cracked. It 
is called the mockernut because while the nut is large, 
usually larger than the shellbark, the kernel is very small 
and difficult to take out of the thick shell. 



Pignut 

I will italicize the pignut because, though I have never 
eaten it, I once tried to, and the first taste was all-suf- 
ficient. Some writers tell us that the flavor is sweet or 
slightly bitter. It was the decidedly bitter kind that I 
found lying temptingly clean and white under the tree. 
The thin outer husk of the pignut is not much larger 
than the nut. It is broader at the top than at the stem, 
where it narrows almost to a point. The husk does not 
open as freely as that of the other hickory-nuts. It is 
inclined to cling to the nut; in some cases it only partially 
opens and drops with the nut. 

Beechnut 

One of the sweetest and most delicately flavored of our 
native nuts is the little, triangular beechnut. The tree 




liic>\of^YiNuT 



Hickory nuts, sweet and bitter. 



160 On the Trail 

is common and widely distributed, but few people know 
anything about the nut. In Kentucky the nuts used to 
be plentiful, but I have seen none in New York. It is 
said that a beech-tree must be fully forty years old before 
it will bear fruit, and that may be the reason the nuts are 
not oftener found. 

The soft-shelled nut is very small, no larger than the 
tip of your little finger. The color is pale brown, and 
it is three-sided with sharp angles. It is contained in a 
small, prickly husk and grows both solitary or in clusters 
of two or three. When touched by frost the burr opens 
and allows the nut to fall out while the burr remains on 
the tree. 

The bark of the beech-tree is ashy gray, and the leaf 
is oblong, pointed at the tip, toothed on the edge, and 
strongly veined. 

Chestnut 

I find that the chestnut-tree is not as well known as its 
fruit, which is sold from stands on the street corners of 
most American cities. A round, green prickly burr is the 
husk of the nut, and this is lined inside with soft, white, 
velvety down. Nestled closely in this soft bed lie several 
dark-brown nuts with soft, polished shells. The first frost 
opens the burrs, and the sweet nuts fall to the ground. 

You may recognize the tree in midsummer by its long- 
tasselled, cream-white blossoms, which hang in profusion 
from the ends of the branches. The chestnut is the only 
forest-tree that blossoms at that time, so you cannot 
mistake it. Later you will know it by the prickly green 
burrs, which develop quickly. The tree is large and com- 
mon to most States. The leaves are from six to eight 
inches long; they are coarsely toothed at the edges, 
sharply pointed at the end, and are prominently veined 




Nuts with soft shells. Beechnut and chestnut. 



16^ On the Trail 

on the under side. They grow mostly in tufts drooping 
from a common centre. 

Bark and Roots of Trees 
Slippery-Ehn 

The inner bark and the root of the slippery-elm are not 
only pleasant to the taste but are said to be nutritious. 
They have a glutinous quality that gives the tree its 
name, and the flavor is nutty and substantial. 

This variety of elm is common and is found from the 
Saint Lawrence River to Florida. It grows to a height 
of sixty or seventy feet, with spreading branches which 
flatten at the top. The outline of the tree is much like 
that of a champagne-glass, wide at the top and narrow 
at the stem. The slippery-elm resembles the white elm, 
but there are differences by which you can know it. If 
you stroke the leaf of a white elm you will find that it is 
rough one way but smooth the other; stroke the leaf of 
the slippery-elm, and it will be rough both ways. The 
buds of the white elm are smooth, those of the slippery- 
elm are hairy. Then you cannot mistake the inner bark 
of the slippery-elm, which is fragrant, thick, and gummy. 
The outer bark is dark brown, with shallow ridges and 
large, loose plates. The leaves are oblong, rounded at 
the base, and are coarsely toothed. They are prominently 
veined and are dark green, paler on the under side. 

Sassafras 

The sassafras grows wild from Massachusetts to Florida, 
and west through the Mississippi Valley. It is generally 
a small tree, from thirty to fifty feet high, and is often 
found growing in dense thickets in uncultivated fields. 
The edible bark is dark red-brown. It is thick but not 



Wild Food on the Trail 163 

hard and is deeply ridged and scaled. The cracked bark 
is one of the characteristics of the tree; it begins to split 
when the tree is about three years old. The strong aro- 
matic flavor is held by the bark, the wood, the roots, the 
stems, and the leaves. I have never tasted the fruit, 
which is berry-like, dark blue, and glossy, and is held by 
a thick, scarlet calyx; but the birds are fond of it. 

Sassafras tea was at one time considered the best of 
spring medicines for purifying the blood, and the bark was 
brought to market cut in short lengths and tied together 
in bunches. 

The leaves are varied ; on one twig there will sometimes 
be three differently shaped leaves. Some will be oval, 
some with three lobes, and some mitten-shaped; that is, 
an oval leaf with a side lobe like the thumb of a mitten. 

Salads. Watercress 

There is no more refreshing salad than the watercress 
gathered fresh from a cool, running brook. It is a common 
plant, found almost anywhere in streams and brooks. Its 
smooth green or brownish leaves lie on the top of the 
water; they are compound, with from three to nine small 
rounded leaflets. The flavor is peppery and pungent. 
Watercress sandwiches are good. The white flowers are 
small and insignificant and grow in a small cluster at the 
end of the stem. 

Dandelion 

A salad of tender, young dandelion leaves is not to be 
despised, and the plant grows everywhere. Only the very 
young leaves, that come up almost white in the spring, 
are good. The flavor is slightly bitter with the wholesome 
bitterness one likes in the spring of the year. These 
young leaves are also good when cooked like spinach. 



164 On the Trail 

The plant is so common it does not really call for a descrip- 
tion, and if you know it you can skip the following: 

Growing low on the ground, sometimes with leaves 
lying flat on the surface, the dandelion sends up a hollow, 
leafless stem crowned with a bright-yellow, many-petalled 
flower about the size of a silver fifty-cent piece. The seed 
head is a round ball of white down. The leaves are deeply 
notched, much like thistle leaves, but they have no 
prickles. 



CHAPTER VIII 
LITTLE FOES OF THE TRAILER 
Poisonous Insects, Reptiles, and Plants 

Insects 

My first experience with wood-ticks, jiggers, and Jersey 
mosquitoes was during the summer we spent at Bayville, 
near Toms River, N. J. In many ways Bayville, with 
its sand, its pines, its beautiful wood roads, and rare wild 
flowers, is an interesting and attractive place. The salty 
air is fine when the thermometer is self-respecting and 
keeps the mercury below 90° in the shade, but the oak 
underbrush harbors wood-ticks, the blackberry bushes 
cover you with jiggers, the woods are full of deer-flies, 
and the vicious mosquito, whose name is Legion, is every- 
where where he is not barred out. 

Wood-Ticks 

I had been told of the ticks that infest the forests of the 
South, had heard blood-curdling stories of how they some- 
times bury themselves, entire, in the flesh of animals and 
men and have to be cut out, and my horror of them was 
great. In reality I found them unpleasant enough but, as 
far as we were concerned, comparatively harmless. 

The wood-tick is a small, rather disgusting-looking 
creature which, in appearance and size, resembles the 
common bedbug. It fastens itself upon you without 
your knowledge and you do not feel it even when it begins 

165 



166 On the Trail 

to suck your blood, but something generally impels you 
to pass your hand over the back of your neck, or cheek, 
where the thing is clinging, and, feeling the lump, you 
pull it off and no great harm done. The tick is supposed 
always to bury its head in the flesh, and it is said that if 
the head is left in when the bug is pulled off an ugly sore 
will be the result. We had no experience of that kind, 
however, nor, in our hurry to get rid of it, did we stop to 
remove the bug scientifically by dropping oil on it, as 
Kephart advises, but just naturally and simply, also 
vigorously, we grasped it between thumb and forefinger 
and hastily plucked it off. The effect of the bite was no 
worse on any of our party than that of the Jersey mosquito. 
Often your friends will see a tick on you and tell you 
of it even while they have several, all unknown to them- 
selves, decorating their own countenance. The name by 
which science knows this unlovely bug is Ixodes leech. 

Jigger. Redbug. Mite 

The tiny mite called by the natives jigger and redbug 
is more annoying than the wood-tick, one reason being 
that there are so many more of him. He really does 
penetrate the skin, and his wanderings under the surface 
give one the feeling of an itching rash which covers the 
body. You won't see the jigger — he is too small, but if 
you invade his domain you will certainly feel him. 

Deer-Fly 

The deer-fly will bite and bite hard enough to hurt. 
It will drive its sharp mandibles into your skin with such 
force as to take out a bit of the flesh, sometimes causing 
the blood to flow, but the bite does not seem particularly 
poisonous, though you feel it at the time and it generally 



Little Foes of the Trailer 167 

raises a lump on the flesh. The deer-fly belongs to the 
family of gadflies. It is larger than a house-fly and its 
wings stand out at right angles to its body. It will not 
trouble you much except in the woods. 

Black-Fly 

The Adirondack and North Woods region is not only 
the resort of hunters, campers, and seekers after health 
and pleasure, but it is also the haunt of the maddening 
black-fly. From early spring until the middle of July 
or first of August the black-fly holds the territory; then it 
evacuates and is seen no more until next season, when 
it begins a new campaign. 

Under the name of buffalo-fly the black-fly is found 
in the west, where, on the prairies, it has been known to 
wage war on horses until death ensued — death of the 
horses, not of the fly. It is a small fly about one-sixth of 
an inch long, thick-bodied, and black. It is said to have 
broad silvery circles on its legs, but no one ever stops to 
look at these. Its proboscis is developed to draw blood 
freely, and it is always in working order. 

The only virtue the black-fly seems to have is its habit 
of quitting operations at sundown and leaving to other 
tormenters the task of keeping you awake at night. 
When the black-fly bites you will know it, and it will 
leave its mark, when it does leave, which must generally 
be by your help, for it holds on with commendable persist- 
ence. If you would learn more of this charming insect, 
look for Simulium molestum in a book which treats the 
subject scientifically. 

No-see-um. Punky. Midge 

There is another pest of the North Woods which the 
guides call the no-see-um. It is a very diminutive midge 



168 On the Trail 

resembling the mosquito in form and viciousness, but so 
small as to be almost invisible. Night and day are the 
same to the no-see-um; its warfare is continuous and its 
bite very annoying, but it disappears with the black-fly 
in July or August. By September the mountains and 
woods are swept clear of all these troublesome things, ex- 
cept at times and in some places the ever-hungry mos- 
quito, which will linger on for a last bite in his summer 
feast. 

The only way to relieve the irritation caused by the 
bites of these pests, including the mosquito, is to bathe 
the affected parts with camphor, alcohol, or diluted am- 
monia. When there are but one or two bites they may 
be touched with strong ammonia, but it will not do to 
use this too freely, as it will burn the skin. 

Gnats 

In the mountains of Pennsylvania the most trouble- 
some insects I found were the tiny gnats that persist in 
flying into one's eyes in a very exasperating fashion. They 
swarm in a cloud in front of your face as you walk and 
make constant dashes at your eyes, although to reach 
their goal brings instant death. 

It is not much trouble to get one of these gnats out of 
your eye when it once gets in. All that is necessary is 
to take the eyelashes of the upper eyelid between your 
thumb and first finger, and draw the upper eyelid down 
over the under eyelid. The under eyelashes sweep the 
upper lid clear, and the rush of tears that comes to the 
eye washes the insect out. 

Bees, Wasps, and Yellow- Jackets 

While honey-bees and wasps can make themselves 
most disagreeable when disturbed, you can usually keep 



Little Foes of the Trailer 160 

away from beehives and bee-trees as well as from the 
great gray, papery nests of the wasp; but the hornets 
or yellow- jackets have an uncomfortable habit of build- 
ing in low bushes and on the ground where you may liter- 
ally put your foot in a hornets' nest. 

They are hot-tempered little people, these same hornets, 
as I have reason to know. Twice I have been punished 
by them, and both times it was my head they attacked. 
Once I found them, or they found me, in a cherry-tree; 
and the second time we met was when I stepped in their 
nest hidden on the ground. Their sting is like a hot wire 
pressed into the flesh. When angered they will chase you 
and swarm around your head, stinging whenever they 
can; but they may be beaten off if some friendly hand 
will wield a towel or anything else that comes handy. 

If the stings of any of these stinging insects are left in 
the wounds they should be taken out with a clean needle 
or clean knife-blade. In any case mix some mud into a 
paste and plaster it on the parts that have been stung. 
If you are in camp and have with you a can of antiphlo- 
gistine use that instead of the mud; it is at least more 
sightly and is equally efficient in reducing inflammation. 

Various things have been devised as protection against 
insect torments. 

One is a veil of net to be worn over the hat. You will 
find this described in Chapter IV under the heading of 
Personal Outfits. 



Dopes 

Then there are dopes to be rubbed over the face, neck, 
and hands. The three said to be the best are Nessmuk's 
Dope, Breck's Dope, and H. P. Wells's Bug-Juice. There 
is also a Rexall preparation which, I am told, is good while 
it stays on, but will wash off with perspiration. 



170 On the Trail 



Nessmuk^s Dope 

In giving the recipe for his dope, Nessmuk says that it 
produces a glaze over the skin and that in preventing 
insect bites he has never known it to fail. This is the 
dope: 

Pine tar . 3 oz. 

Castor oil 2 oz. 

Oil of pennyroyal i oz. 

Simmer all together over a slow fire, and bottle. 
This is sufficient for four persons for two weeks. 

Brack's Dope 

Pine tar 3 oz. 

Olive (or castor oil) 2 oz. 

Oil of pennyroyal i oz. 

Citronella i oz. 

Creosote i oz. 

Camphor (pulverized) i oz. 

Large tube of carbolated vaseline. 
Heat the tar and oil, and add the other ingredients; sim- 
mer over slow fire until well mixed. The tar may be omitted 
if disliked or for ladies' use. 

Breck tells us that his dope was planned to be a counter- 
irritant after being bitten as well as a preventer of bites. 

H. P. Wells's Bug- Juice 

Olive oil 3^ pt. 

Creosote i oz. 

Pennyroyal i oz. 

^ Camphor i oz. 

Dissolve camphor in alcohol and mix. 

Any dope must be well rubbed in on face, neck, ears, 
and behind ears, hands (on the backs), wrists, and arms; 
but be very careful not to get it in your eyes. 



Wild Food on the Trail 171 



Smudges 

Smudges are said to afford relief in camp, but my own 
experience has been that the insects can stand them 
better than I. A smudge is made by burning things that 
make httle flame and much smoke. Dead leaves, not 
too dry, will make a fairly good smudge, but a better way 
is to burn damp cedar bark, or branches, on piles of hot 
coals taken from the camp-fire and kept alive at different 
sides of the camp. 

The accounts of extreme suffering caused by insect 
bites come from unusually sensitive people. All people 
are not affected alike. Two persons from one camp will 
tell entirely different stories of their experience with in- 
sects. The best way to encounter these, as all other 
annoyances, is to protect yourself as well as you can and 
then, without whimpering, make the best of the situation. 
All the pests described will not fall upon you at once, and, 
taken singly or even doubly, you will manage to survive 
the ordeal. If the pleasure of the trail did not over- 
balance the pain there would be fewer campers to relate 
their troubles. 

Snakes 

The bite of a poisonous snake is by all means to be 
avoided, and the point is: you almost always can avoid 
it. With all the snakes in the United States, Doctor 
William T. Hornaday, director of the Zoological Park of 
New York City, tells us that out of seventy-five million 
people not more than two die each year of snake-bites. 

Snakes are not man-hunters; they will not track you 
down; they much prefer to keep out of your way. What 
you have to do is to keep out of theirs. In a region where 
poisonous snakes abound it is well to wear khaki leggins 



m On the Trail 

as a protection in case you inadvertently step too near 
and anger the creatures, for in such cases they sometimes 
strike before you have time to beat a retreat. According 
to Doctor Hornaday, the poisonous snakes of North 
America are: 

The rattlesnake, 

Water- moccasin, 

Copperhead, 

Sonora coral-snake, 

Harlequin snake. 

Rattlesnakes 

The rattlesnake appears to vary in color and markings 
in the different locaUties where it is found, and there are 
fourteen or fifteen varieties, but all carry the rattles, 
shake them warningly, and coil before they strike. The 
rattlesnake does not want to fight and if you keep at a 
safe distance it will glide off in another direction, but it 
is safest not to venture within striking distance, which 
is said to be two-thirds the length of the snake, even if the 
snake has not coiled, for it moves quickly and strikes like 
a flash. 

The rattles are at the extfeme end of the tail and are 
composed of horny joints. The sound of the rattle is 
much like the humming of a locust (cicada) . Rattlesnakes 
are often found sunning themselves on large rocks, and 
stone-quarries are the chosen winter quarters where 
whole colonies assemble. They are also found, during the 
summer, among underbrush and in stubble-fields, where ^ 
they probably go to hunt field-mice and other small 
mammals. 

Banded Rattlesnake 

The mountains of Pennsylvania are a favorite resort 
of the rattlesnake, but, though I have passed many sum- 








WATEf^-HoCCASIN 

"Poison ou.^ 




^ED-aELUED WaTER-3nAI\E- 

Poisonous and non-poisonous snakes. 



174 On the Trail 

mers in Pike County, famous for its snakes, the only live 
one I ever saw in that locality was in a box at Rowland 
station. The men of bur party occasionally killed one 
and brought it to camp as a trophy, but one of our week- 
end guests spent most of his time hunting the rattler that 
he might take its skin back to the city, yet without suc- 
cess. 

It is the banded rattlesnake that is usually found in 
Pennsylvania. The color is yellowish and it is marked 
with irregular, wide bands of dark brown. Sometimes 
the snake is almost black, and it is thought that it turns 
dark with age. 

Diamond Rattlesnake 

The rattlesnake marked in diamond patterns of gold 
outline on brown is of the south and is oftenest found in 
Florida. This is a very large snake, and closely allied to 
it is the Texas rattlesnake, which is the same in markings 
and color, but paler, as if faded out. 

Massasauga 

The massasauga is the rattlesnake occasionally found 
in the swamps from western New York to Nebraska, but 
it is rare. Its color is light brown with patches of dark 
brown its entire length. 

Copperhead 

The copperhead is not a rattler, though its vibrating 
tail amid dry leaves will sometimes hum like one. (This 
is also true of the blacksnake.) Its bite is very poisonous. 
It is found amid rocks and in the woods, and is at home 
from New England and the Atlantic coast west to Indiana 
and south to Texas. This snake is seldom more than three 



Little Foes of the Trailer 175 

feet long. Its color is light reddish-brown with bands of 
rich chestnut which are narrow on the back and wide at 
the sides. The underpart is whitish with dark spots on 
the abdomen. The head is generally coppery in color 
but not always. In Texas the colors of the copperhead 
are stronger, the bands and head are decidedly reddish, 
and the bands have narrow white borders. 



Harlequin Snake and Coral-Snake 

The harlequin snake and the coral-snake are so similar 
in color and in habits, one description for both will an- 
swer our purpose. They are southern snakes, beginning 
in southern Indiana and extending south. They are quite 
poisonous, but of such retiring habits as hardly to be 
classed as dangerous. Most of their time is spent hidden 
under the sand and in the ground, but when they do 
come out their colors are so brilliant as not to be mis- 
taken. On the harlequin snake the colors are bright coral- 
red, yellow, and black, which alternate in stripes that en- 
circle the body. Its 'head is always banded with a broad 
yellow stripe. The coral-snake is much the same in 
color, and only a close observer would notice the differ- 
ence. The coral -snake is also found in Arizona. 



Water-Moccasin, Cottonmouth 

The water-moccasin is ugly, and ugly all the way through. 
Its deadly viciousness is not redeemed by any outward 
beauty. Its average length is three and a half feet, 
though it is occasionally longer. Its unlovely body is 
thick and the color of greenish mud; the sides are paler 
and have wide, blackish bands. There are dark bands 
from the eyes to the mouth and above them there are 
pale streaks. The top of the head is very dark. The 



176 On the Trail 

abdomen is yellow with splashes of brown or black. Heavy 
shields overhang the eyes and give a sinister expression 
to their angry glare. When suddenly approached the 
moccasin opens wide its white-lined mouth, and one then 
understands why it is called cottonmouth. 

This snake does not coil before its strikes, but vibrates 
its tail slowly and watches its prey with mouth open. 
The moccasin is decidedly a southern snake, and girls 
of the south know that its home is along the edges of 
bayous and in the swamps. It is frequently seen with its 
head and a small part of its body out of water while the 
rest is submerged, but at times it will be found on a water- 
soaked log or on underbrush and low boughs of trees 
that overhang the water. The bite is very poisonous. 

Other Snakes 

There are many other snakes in the United States, but 
they are not venomous. Here is one thing to remember: 
you need never fear a snake found in this country which 
has lengthwise stripes, that is, stripes running from head 
to tail. Daniel C. Beard tells me that he has learned this 
from observation, and Raymond L. Ditmars, curator of 
reptiles in the New York Zoological Park, agrees with him. 

While the lengthwise-striped snakes are harmless, others 
not striped in this way are harmless, too. The blacksnake, 
though he looks an ugly customer and, when cornered, 
will sometimes show fight, is not venomous and his bite 
is not deep. It is, therefore, wanton cruelty to kill every 
snake that crosses your path simply because it happens to 
be a snake. Kephart, in his book of " Camping and Wood- 
craft, " says in regard to identifying the poisonous snake: 

"The rattlesnake, copperhead, and cottonmouth are 
easily distinguished from all other snakes, as all three of 
them bear a peculiar mark, or rather a pair of marks, that 



Little Foes of the Trailer 111 

no other animal possesses. This mark is the pit, which 
is a deep cavity on each side of the face between the 
nostrils and the eye, sinking into the upper jaw-bone." 

If, when one has been bitten and the snake killed, an 
examination is made of its head, it can be ascertained 
immediately whether the snake was venomous, and in 
this way unnecessary fright may be avoided. 

Beaded Lizard, Gila Monster 

The only other venomous reptile found in the United 
States is the beaded lizard, called Gila monster (pro- 
nounced heela). Unless you visit the desert regions of 
Arizona and New Mexico, you will not be apt to run 
across this most interesting though poisonous reptile. 

The Gila monster looks very much like a unique piece 
of Indian beadwork, wdth its fat body and stubby legs 
covered with bright-colored, bead-like tubercles, which 
form almost a Navajo pattern. Its length is about 
nineteen inches, and its beads are colored salmon, flesh- 
pink, white or yellow, and black. Though it has the ap- 
pearance of being stuffed with cotton, it is really formidable 
and very much alive. Its jaw^s are strong; when it bites 
it holds on like a bulldog, and there is no way to force it 
to open its mouth except to pry the powerful jaws apart. 
While otherwise slow of movement, it will turn quickly 
from side to side, snapping viciously. The inside of the 
Gila's mouth is black, and when angry it opens it wide 
and hisses. 

Treatment for Snake-Bites 

If the unlikely should chance to happen and one of your 
party is bitten by a poisonous snake, first aid should be 
given immediately, and if a physician is within reach he 



178 On the Trail 

should be summoned as quickly as possible. Much de- 
pends, however, upon what is done first. Any one can 
administer the following treatment, and it should be done 
without flinching, for it may mean the saving of a life: 
(i) As soon as the person is bitten twist a tourniquet 
very tightly above the wound, that is, between the wound 
and the heart, to keep the poison as far as possible from 
entering the entire system. 

(2) Slash the wound or stab it with a clean knife-blade 
and force it to bleed copiously. If there is no break in 
the skin or membrane of your mouth or lips and no cavity 
in any of your teeth, suck the wound to draw out the 
poison. 

(3) Give a stimulant in small doses at frequent intervals 
to stimulate the heart and lungs and strengthen the 
nerves, but avoid overdoing this, for the result will be 
harmful. 

(4) If you have with you an antivenomous serum, 
inject it as directed by the formula that accompanies it. 

Tie a loose bandage around the affected member, a 
handkerchief, neck scarf, or even a rope for a tourniquet, 
to check circulation, as described in Chapter XII, on 
Accidents. Every little while loosen the tourniquet, then 
tighten it again, for it will not do to stop the circulation 
entirely. 

All authorities do not advise sucking the wound, but 
it is generally done, for with a perfectly sound and healthy 
mouth there is no danger, as the poison enters the system 
only by contact with the blood. 

Some writers advocate cauterizing the wound with a 
hot iron; but, whatever is done, do quickly, and do not be 
afraid. Fear is contagious and exceedingly harmful to 
the patient. Remember that a snake-bite is seldom fatal, 
and that a swollen arm or leg does not mean that the case 
is hopeless. 



Little Foes of the' Trailer 179 



Poisonous Plants 

There are two kinds of poisonous plants: those that 
are poison to the touch and those that are harmless un- 
less taken inwardly. Both may be avoided when you 
learn to identify them. 

Poison-Ivy 

We are apt to think that every one knows the common 
poison-ivy, but that some people are not familiar with 
it was shown when one beautiful autumn day a young 
woman passed along our village street carrying a handful 
of the sprays of the vine, gathered probably because of 
their beautiful coloring. Noticing that she was a stranger, 
no doubt from the city, and realizing the danger she was 
running of poisoning herself or some one else, we hurriedly 
caught up with her and gave first aid to the ignorant in 
a few forceful remarks. The result was that, without a 
word, the young woman simply opened her hand, dropped 
her vines on the walk, and hurried off as if to escape a 
pestilence. We were left to close the incident by kicking 
the stuff into the street that some other equally unin- 
formed person might not be tempted to pick it up. 

If you do not know the poison-ivy, remember this: 
It is the three-leaved ivy. Its leaves always grow in triplets 
as shown in illustration. The leaves are smooth, but not 
glossy; they have no teeth but are occasionally notched. 
Sometimes the plant is bushy, standing a foot or two high, 
again it is trailing or climbing. It loves fence corners 
and big rocks to clamber over; it will ajso choose large 
trees for support, climbing up to their tops. The flowers 
are whitish and the fruit is a pretty, green-gray berry, 
round and smooth, which grows in scant clusters. 



180 On the Trail 

Poison-ivy is found through the country from Maine 
to Texas and west to South Dakota, Utah, and Arkansas. 

Some people are immune to ivy poison and, happily, 
I belong to the fortunate ones. Many persons are poisoned 
by it, however, and it may be that fear makes them more 
susceptible. On some the painful, burning eruption is 
difficult to cure. 

Poison-Oak 

The poison-oak closely resembles the poison-ivy, and 
is sometimes called by that name, but its leaves are dif- 
ferently shaped, being oval in outline with a few coarse, 
blunt teeth. They are also thicker and smaller than the 
ivy leaf. The poison-oak is plentiful in cool uplands and 
in ravines, and is general throughout the Pacific coast 
from Lower California and Arizona to British America. 

Poison-Sumach, or Swamp-Sumach 

Another member of the same family is the poison- 
sumach. They are all three equally poisonous and act 
by contact. The poison, or swamp, sumach is a high, 
branching shrub closely resembling the harmless species 
which grow on high, dry ground. The poison variety 
chooses low, wet places. The leaves of the poison-sumach 
are compound, with from seven to thirteen leaflets grow- 
ing from one stem, as the leaves of the walnut-tree grow; 
the stalks are often of a purplish color. The leaflets are 
oval in shape and are pointed at the tip. The surface is 
smooth and green on both sides and they have no teeth. 
The autumn coloring is very brilliant. The flowers are 
whitish-green and grow in loose clusters from a stiff 
middle stalk at the angles of the leaves. The fruit is a 
gray-green berry growing in scant, drooping clusters. 
This gray drooping berry is the sumac poison sign, for the 




Plants poison to the touch. 



18^ 071 the Trail 

fruit of the harmless sumach is crimson and is held erect 
in close pyramidal clusters. 

Witch-hazel (Pond's Extract) is used as a remedy for 
all of these poisons, but it is claimed that a paste made of 
cooking-soda and water is better. Alcohol will sometimes 
be effective, also a strong lye made of wood-ashes. Salt 
and water will give relief to some. It seems to depend 
upon the person whether the remedy, as well as the 
poison, will have effect. 

Yellow Lady's-Slipper 

Growing in bogs and low woods from Maine to Minne- 
sota and Washington, southward to Georgia and Missouri, 
there is a sweet-scented, little yellow-and-brown flower 
called the yellow lady's-slipper, the plant of which is said 
to have the same effect when handled as poison-ivy. This 
flower is an orchid. The stalk, from one to two feet high, 
bears a single blossom at the top, and the leaves, shaped 
and veined like those of the lily-of-the-valley, grow alter- 
nately down the stem. The plant does not branch. 
Like the ivy, the yellow lady's-slipper does not poison 
every one. 

I know of no other wild plants that are poisonous to the 
touch; the following wifl poison only if taken inwardly. 

Deadly Nightshade 

To the nightshade family belong plants that are poison- 
ous and plants that are not, but the thrilling name, deadly 
nightshade, carries with it the certainty of poison. 

The plant is an annual and you may often find it grow- 
ing in a neglected corner of the garden as well as in waste 
places. It is a tall plant; the one I remember in our own 
garden reached to the top of a five-foot board fence. Its 



Little Foes of the Trailer 183 

leaves are rather triangular in shape, they are dark green 
and the wavy edges are notched rather than toothed. The 
flowers are white and grow in small dusters. The fruit 
is a berry, round, black, and smooth, with calyx adhering 
to it. The berry clusters grow at the end of drooping 
stems. This must not be mistaken for the high-bush 
blueberry, for to eat the fruit would be most dangerous. 
The antidotes for nightshade poison are emetics, cathar- 
tics, and stimulants. The poison should be thrown off 
the stomach first, then strong coffee be given as a stim- 
ulant. 

Pokeweed, Pigeonberry 

Pokeweed comes under the heading of poisonous plants 
though its berries are eaten by birds, and its young shoots 
are said to be almost equal in flavor, and quite as whole- 
some, as asparagus. It seems to be the large perennial 
root that holds the poison, though some authorities claim 
that the poison permeates the entire plant to a certain 
extent. The root is sometimes mistaken for that of edi- 
ble plants and the young leaves for those of the marsh- 
marigold, which are edible when cooked. It is a tall 
plant with a stout stem and emits a strong odor. You 
will find it growing by the wayside and in rocky places. 
The leaves are oblong and pointed at the tips and base. 
They have no teeth. The small white flowers are in 
clusters. The fruit is a small, flat, dark-purple berry, 
growing in long, upstanding clusters on a central stalk. 
The individual stem of the berry is very short. The 
name inkberry was given to the plant because of the 
strong stain of the berry juice which was sometimes used 
for ink. Pokeweed is at home in various states, Maine 
to Minnesota, Arkansas, and Florida. 



184 On the Trail 



Poison-Hemlock 

The poison-hemlock is well known historically, being 
in use at the time of Socrates, and believed to have been 
administered to him by the Greeks. It is quite as poison- 
ous now as in Socrates's day, and accidental poisoning has 
come from people eating the seeds, mistaking them for 
anise-seed, eating the leaves for parsley and the roots 
for parsnips. The plant grows from two to seven feet 
high; its stem is smooth and spotted or streaked with 
purplish-red. It has large, parsley-like leaves and pretty 
clusters of small, white flowers which grow, stiff-stemmed, 
from a common centre and blossom in July and August. 
When the fresh leaves are bruised they give out a distinctly 
mouse-like odor and they are very nauseating to the 
taste. Poison-hemlock is common on waysides and waste 
places in New York, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New 
Jersey, and Ohio. It is also found in New England 'and 
Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Louisiana, and California. 

The treatment recommended by professionals is emetics, 
warmth of hands and feet, artificial respiration, and the 
subcutaneous injection of atropine, administered by a 
physician. 

Water-Hemlock 

Water-hemlock is similar in appearance and in effect. 
It is found in wet places and on the borders of swamps. 
The remedies are the same as for poison-hemlock. 



Jimson-Weed 

The jimson-weed is very common in Kentucky. I 
have not seen so much of it in the east and north, but it 
appears to grow pretty nearly over the whole United 



IDeadly 

NlG,HTSHADE 




Plants poison to the taste. 



186 On the Trail 

States. It is from one to five feet in height, and an ill- 
smelling weed, though first cousin to the beautiful, culti- 
vated datura, which is a highly prized garden plant. 
The stem is smooth, green, stout, and branching. The 
flower is large, sometimes four inches long, and trumpet- 
shaped. There are several varieties of this weed; on some 
the flower is white, on others the five, flaring, sharp- 
pointed lobes are stained with lavender and magenta. 
The calyx is long, close-fitting, and light green. The 
leaves are rather large; they are angularly oval in shape 
and are coarsely notched. The fruit is a prickly, egg- 
shaped capsule which contains the seeds. It is these 
seeds which are sometimes eaten with serious results, and 
children have been poisoned by putting the flowers in 
their mouths. 

Emetics should immediately be administered to throw 
the poison off the stomach, then hot, strong coffee should 
be given. Sometimes artificial respiration must be re- 
sorted to. In all cases of poisoning a physician should 
be called if possible. 

The habit of chewing leaves and stems without know- 
ing what they are should be suppressed when on the trail. 
It is something like going through a drug store and sam- 
pling the jars of drugs as you pass, and the danger of 
poisoning is almost as great. 

Toadstools 

Unless you are an expert in distinguishing non-poison- 
ous mushrooms from the poison toadstool, leave them all 
alone. Many deaths occur yearly from eating toadstools 
which have been mistaken for the edible mushrooms. 



CHAPTER IX 

ON THE TRAIL WITH YOUR CAMERA 
What to Photograph and How 

You cannot depend entirely upon your memory to 
recall the sights and adventures of the trail, and will be 
only half-equipped if you go without a camera and note- 
book. Several clicks of the camera will record the prin- 
cipal events, while your note-book will fill in the detail. 

Selecting a Camera 

In selecting a camera remember that every ounce in 
weight counts as two when on the long trail, and that to 
have to carry it in your hand is most troublesome and 
inconvenient. The folding camera, which can be hung 
over your shoulder with a strap, is therefore the best; 
and do not try to carry plates, they are too heavy. It is 
of little use to consult the clerk of a photographic supply 
shop about the style of camera you should buy. As a 
rule he is not chosen for his knowledge of the goods, and 
his advice may be worse than none. The better plan is 
to secure descriptive catalogues from dealer or manu- 
facturer before investing, and study them well. The 
catalogues will tell you the price, the size, the weight, and 
what kind of work each variety of camera will do, and you 
will learn the advantages and limitations of many before 
deciding upon one. 

How to Know Your Camera 

The camera once bought and in your hands, the next 
thing to do is to become thoroughly acquainted with it. 

187 



188 On the Trail 

With your camera you -are entitled to a little book of in- 
structions. Take your camera and the book, sit down 
alone, and give them your entire attention. Read the 
book carefully and, at the same time, carry out the in- 
structions while the camera is unloaded, that is, without 
the film. If the size of the diaphragm can be changed, 
change it and look into the lens to see the effect ; also try 
adjusting the shutter and watch the lens for the effect 
of instantaneous and time exposures. Try the focussing 
scale, locate some image in the finder, and practise hold- 
ing the camera pressed closely against your body, pointing 
neither up nor down, tipping neither to one side nor the 
other, but aimed directly at the object you are supposed 
to be photographing. Then try turning the key which 
brings the film exposures into position. 

Loading the Camera 

Learn how to load and to unload, first without unroll- 
ing your film. Afterward adjust the roll in the camera 
and see that it is properly placed and will turn easily, 
before you loosen the end of the film. If you detach the 
gummed paper which keeps the film tightly wrapped be- 
fore placing the roll in the camera, the whole film will 
spring loose from its spool and become light-struck before 
you can adjust it. 

Count the Turns of the Key 

With your first roll of films it is well to learn and re- 
member the number of turns you must give the key to 
bring a new exposure into place. With my camera which 
takes a four-by-five picture, five turns of the key are 
necessary between the exposures. Knowing this, I count, 
and when the fifth turn is reached I complete it slowly, 



On the Trail with Your Camera 189 

watching carefully the while for the new number to appear 
in the little red celluloid window. In this way, even when 
hurried or excited, I do not lose an exposure by turning 
the key once too often. Always remember to place a 
new exposure directly after taking a picture, to make sure 
that you will not take two on one film. In making ready 
for a new subject count again, for there are four things 
one must be sure of with most cameras before taking a 
photograph, and by counting you will know if any have 
been omitted: 

(i) See that a fresh exposure is in place. 

(2) See that the shutter is properly adjusted for in- 
stantaneous (or time) exposure. 

(3) See that diaphragm stop is set at the proper open- 
ing for the light you will have. 

(4) See that the distance is correctly focussed. 

There are cameras, however, that are of universal focus 
and do not need adjustment. These are convenient ones 
for the trail, as they are always ready and can be used 
quickly. Being small, they are also light to carry. 

Be Economical with Your Films 

A very important thing to learn when taking photo- 
graphs is to be economical with your films, and especially 
is this so when on the trail, for your supply is then neces- 
sarily limited. Merely for the sake of using the new toy, 
many amateurs will photograph subjects that are not 
of the slightest interest to any one, and very often, when a 
scene or object does present itself that is well worth while, 
all the films will have been wasted and no picture can 
be taken. 



190 On the Trail 



Plan Your Pictures to Illustrate Your Trip 

It is a good idea to plan your pictures so that they will 
illustrate your trip from beginning to end. A snap-shot 
of your party starting on the trail, another of the country 
through which you pass, with, perhaps, one or two figures 
in it, and the remainder of the films used on objects of 
interest found on the way. If you can secure pictures of 
any wild animals you may see, they will make the series 
doubly interesting and valuable. When you go into camp 
a view of the camp should be included. When the pic- 
tures are printed write on the back of each what it rep- 
resents, where taken, and the date; they will then be 
valuable data as well as trustworthy reminders. 

Backgrounds 

Look for the best view of a subject before using your 
camera; there is always a choice. One side may be much 
more pleasing or more characteristic than the other, or 
may show interesting details more plainly. If you have 
studied drawing you will be able also to find the view 
which makes the best composition. The background, 
too, must be considered, and the position of the sun. 
The simpler the background the better. Near-by foliage 
is not good for figures; it is too confused and the figures 
will mingle with it. Sometimes the adjustable portrait- 
lens, which can be slipped over the other, will obviate 
that trouble by blurring everything not in exact focus, 
and this lens will allow you to stand nearer the object 
and so make it larger on the film. It is not intended for 
distant views and the camera should not be more than 
six feet from the subject when it is used. 

Quiet water makes an excellent background, also 




i 



The white birch-tree makes a fine background for the beaver. 



192 On the Trail 

distant foliage and hills, flat fields and meadows. These 
may be obtained for figures, but often the very things you 
want to photograph most are in the woods with foliage 
close to and all around them; then you must simply do 
the best you can under the circumstances. 

Color Values in Photographs 

Another thing to remember is that, unless in broad 
sunlight, green will take dark and sometimes black; and 
brown or tan, being of the same color value in the photo- 
graph, will mingle with and often be lost in the back- 
ground. If you are photographing a tawny animal, and 
most wild animals are tawny, try to get it when in the 
sunlight with a dark or flat background, or else against 
a background lighter in color than the animal. For in- 
stance, a red squirrel or chipmunk will be lost amid, or 
against, the foliage of a tree, but on a fence rail or fallen 
log it will stand out distinctly. 

If you have a chance at a beaver it will be near the 
water, of course. Then the choice view will be where the 
water can form at least part of the background. If the 
shore is at the back it may be difficult when the print is 
made to find the beaver at all. In the interesting photo- 
graph shown here the beaver is against the light trunk 
of the tree which shows where he has gnawed it almost 
through. In all this the position of the sun must be taken 
into account, but the rule of always having the sun at 
your back, like most other rules, has its exceptions. I 
have found that so long as the sun lights up the object, 
even when from one side, I can secure a good picture; 
but I never allow it to strike the lens of the camera, and 
I make sure that the subject is not silhouetted against 
its background by having all the light at its back. 



194 On the Trail 



Photographing Wild Animals 

It is not easy to photograph wild animals after you 
have found them, but you can do it if you are quick to 
see and to act and are also patient enough to wait for a 
good opportunity. You will often find deer feeding in 
sunlit places and can, if you stalk them carefully, ap- 
proach near enough to get a good shot. If they happen 
to be in partial or light shadow, open the diaphragm of 
your camera at its widest stop and try for an instantaneous 
exposure. Very good photographs are sometimes taken 
by that method, and it is worth the experiment where 
time exposures are out of the question, as in taking moving 
animals. A snap-shot will be of no avail if the shadow is 
heavy, however, and a short time exposure may some- 
times be used. Set your time lever at No. i, which means 
one second, and the lever controlling the diaphragm at 
No. i6, and by pressing the bulb once you will have a 
time exposure of one second. An important thing for 
you to realize in taking animal photographs is the fact 
that though the creature may seem quite near as you see 
it with your natural eye, in the picture it will occupy only 
the relative space that it does on the finder. If it covers 
a quarter of the space on the finder it will cover a quarter, 
no more and no less, of the finished photograph. 

The wonderful pictures we see of wild animals are 
usually the work of professionals who have especially 
adapted cameras; but to take the photograph oneself 
makes even a poor one of more value. 

Shutter Speed 

To photograph objects in rapid motion such as flying 
birds, the speed of your shutter must be at least one three- 



196 On the Trail 

hundredths of a second and you must have a fast lens; 
but with a shutter speed of one one-hundredth I have 
taken very good pictures of things moving at a moderate 
rate. A walking or slowly running animal, for instance, 
can be taken with a shutter speed of one one-hundredth. 
You should find out the speed of the shutter when you 
buy your camera, then you will not throw away films 
on things beyond its possibilities. ''You press the button 
and we'll do the rest" doesn't work where moving objects 
are concerned. 

Those who go a-gunning with the camera, stalk their 
game as carefully as any hunter with a gun, and for really 
good results the following method is the safest to adopt. 
Time and patience are required, but one does not mind 
giving these, the interest is so absorbing and the successful 
picture so well worth while. 

Set Your Camera Like a Trap 

Find the spot frequented by the animal or bird you 
are after, wait for it to go away of its own accord while 
confident and unfrightened, then set up your camera like 
a trap where the lens will point to the place the bird or 
animal will probably occupy upon its return. 

If it is a nest it will be easy, for you can be sure the 
bird will come back there and can adjust your camera 
to take in the entire nest. Where there is no nest, sight 
your camera upon some object between which and the 
lens the creature must come in order to be within focus, 
and trample down any undergrowth that may obstruct 
the view. Make sure that your focus is correct for the 
distance and that the film will take in the whole animal. 
You can provide for this by staking off the probable size 
of the animal at the place where you expect it to stand, 
and then looking in the finder to see if both stakes are 



198 On the Trail 

in focus. You will probably have to raise the camera 
from the ground and perhaps tip it a little. For this a 
low tripod is best but if you haven't that, and very likely 
you will not, a convenient log, stump, or stone will answer 
the purpose. If even these are not handy you can build 
up a stand of stones or small logs, or pile earth into a 
mound. Whatever material you use, the stand must 
be made strong and firm. To have it slip or slide is to 
lose the picture. Make your camera perfectly secure 
and immovable on the stand, then tie a long cord to the 
release (the small lever which works the shutter). The 
cord must be amply long enough to reach to the ambush 
where you will hide while awaiting your game. The 
ambush may be a clump of bushes, a convenient rock, or 
a tree behind which you will be concealed. If there is 
no such cover near you can make one of brush and branches. 
When the cord is carried from the camera to the ambush 
hide the camera with leafy branches, leaving a good open- 
ing for the cord to pass through to prevent it from be- 
coming entangled. Then hie to your cover and, with the 
slightly slack cord in your hand, await the coming of your 
game. 

Taking the Picture 

As the animal approaches the camera grasp your cord 
firmly and steady your nerves to act quickly, and when 
it is in focus, not before, give a quick, firm pull to the 
cord, releasing it immediately, and the thing is done. 
Don't become excited at the critical moment and make 
your shot too soon or jerk the cord too hard. If a bird is 
to be taken upon the nest and the nest is in shadow a 
short time exposure can be given, or a bulb exposure. 
For bulb exposure set the lever that controls the shutter 
at B (meaning bulb), and the lever controlling the dia- 
phragm at No. 1 6. When the bird has settled upon its nest 



200 On the Trail 

pull the cord, count three slowly, and release it. The 
shutter will remain open as long as the cord is held taut 
and will close when released. This method cannot be 
used for long time exposures. When you become more 
practised in the art of wild-life photography you will 
know how much time to allow for the exposures. There 
will be some failures, of course, but one good photograph 
among several will repay you for all your trouble and will 
make you keen to try again. 

Photographing the Trail 

You can get a good picture of the trail with a snap-shot 
when it is in the open, but a forest trail must have time 
exposure. When your eyes have become accustomed to 
the dim light of the woods it will not seem dark, and you 
will be tempted to try a snap-shot because it is* easier, but 
if you do you may certainly count that a lost film. It is 
not possible to hold your camera in your hands and succeed 
with a time exposure of over one second. The beating of 
your heart will jar it, a breath will make it move, so some 
kind of a rest must be found as when taking the animals 
with bulb exposure. If the light is very dim first set the 
lever controlling the shutter at the point T (time), then 
set the lever for the diaphragm at No. i6, press the bulb, 
and allow from fifteen to twenty seconds', or even thirty 
seconds', exposure. 

Timing Without a Watch 

You can time it without a watch by counting in this 
way: one-and-two-and-three-and- up to the number of 
seconds required. One-and is one second. 

When the seconds have been counted, press the bulb 
again and if the camera has not moved you should have 
a good negative. No hard-and-fast rules can be given for 




The country through which you pass, with a trailer in the foregrovmd. 



^02 On the Trail 

this work because conditions vary; you must rely some 
on your judgment and learn by experience. It is said 
that overexposure is better than underexposure and can 
be handled better in developing the films, so when in 
doubt it is well to allow a little more time than you think 
should be necessary. Curious results sometimes come 
from underexposed films. I once had a print in outline, 
like a drawing, from a negative made in the Rocky Moun- 
tains. It did not look in the least like a photograph, 
there were no shadows, but it was a good illustration of 
the scene. 

Photographing Flowers and Ferns 

If your camera will focus so that you can place it near 
enough to take small objects such as flowers and ferns, 
another field of interest is open to you and you can add 
a record of those found on the trail to complete your 
series. A camping trip will afford better and more un- 
hurried opportunities for photographing flowers than a 
one day's trail, unless you carry a box or basket with 
you for securing specimens that you can take back and 
photograph at leisure. Do not break the stems of the 
flowers or plants, take them roots and all. Loosen the 
soil all around and under the roots so that which clings 
to the plant may be undisturbed and taken up with it. 
If the soil falls away, cover the root with damp loam or 
mud and tie it up in a large leaf as in illustration. This 
method not only keeps it from wilting but will enable you 
to take a picture of the growing plant with all its interest- 
ing characteristics. If you put your plant with its clod 
of earth in a shallow bowl, pour in as much water as the 
bowl will hold, and keep it always full, it will remain 
fresh and vigorous a long while and may be transplanted 
to continue its life and growth after you have finished 
with it. 




nWD AROUIND 




McTHOID OF 
T=*ROTECTIMGn 
KOOTS TO KEEP 
FLAINTa FRESM 

Vv^MILE YOU 

CARRy TMEn 
TO CAMP roR. 

7='hOTOqRAPMIhG, 



V/RAT=FED\\ 
INLEAVE5 




204 On the Trail 

Just here must come the caution not to tear up wild 
plants by their roots unless they are to serve a real pur- 
pose. Some of our most beautiful wild flowers and rarest 
ferns are now in danger of being exterminated because of 
thoughtless and careless people who, in gathering them, 
will not even take the trouble to break the stems. When 
the roots are gone there will be no more flowers and ferns. 

Look at the Date on Your Film 

Even the best photographer cannot take good photo- 
graphs unless he has good films. On the box of every 
roll of films is stamped the latest date when it may be 
safely developed and it is foolish to try to have a film 
developed after that date has passed. When you buy 
your films be sure they are fresh ones and that the date 
insures you ample time; one year ahead is none too long. 

Do not open the box or take the wrappings from a roll 
of films until you are ready to load your camera. Then 
save both box and wrappings, and when your films have 
been exposed, use them for covering the roll again. Keep 
the wrapped and boxed rolls in a dark place until they 
can be developed. Dampness will spoil both films and 
plates. If you are in a damp climate, or on shipboard, 
keep them in a tin box, tightly closed. 



CHAPTER X 
ON AND IN THE WATER 

Boats Safe and Unsafe. Canoeing. Rowing. Poling. Raft- 
Making. Swimming. Fishing 

Safe and Unsafe Boats 

One seldom goes on the long trail, or into camp, with- 
out encountering water, and boats of some kind must be 
used, generally rowboats or canoes. The safest boat on 
placid water is the heavy, fiat-bottomed rowboat with 
oars secured to the oar-locks. In my younger days we 
owned such a boat, and no one felt in the least anxious 
when I would put off for hours alone on the lake at our 
camp in Pike County, Pa.; especially as the creaking 
turn of the oar-locks could easily be heard at camp loudly 
proclaiming that I still lived, while I enjoyed the luxury 
of solitary adventure. But a tub of this kind is not 
adapted to all waters and all purposes, and the safest 
boat on any water is the one best adapted to it and to 
the purpose for which the boat is used. 

Round-bottomed boats tip easily and should, therefore, 
not be used when learning to row, though they are safe 
enough in the hands of those accustomed to their man- 
agement. The best of oarsmen, however, cannot pre- 
vent her boat from capsizing if her passenger does not 
know how to enter or leave it, or to sit still when aboard. 

Stepping in and out of a Boat 

To step on the gunwale (the edge of the boat) will natu- 
rally tip it and most likely turn it over. One should al- 

205 



On and In the Water 207 

ways step directly into the middle in order to keep the 
boat evenly balanced, and in getting out, step from the 
middle. Stepping on the side or the gunwale of a boat 
shows the ignorance of a tenderfoot. There are row- 
boats that are neither round-bottomed nor flat but are 
shaped like the boat in photograph, page 206. These 
are safer than the round-bottomed, but are more easily 
capsized than the flat-bottomed boats. 

Canoes and Canoeing 

If you are to own a canoe select it carefully; consult 
catalogues of reliable dealers, and, if possible, have an 
experienced and good canoeist help you choose it. The 
pretty canoe made of wood will answer in calm waters 
and wear well with careful usage, but sportsmen prefer the 
canvas-covered canoe, declaring it the best boat for cruis- 
ing, as it is light, easy to manage, will stand rough usage, 
and will also carry greater loads. The best make has a 
frame of hardwood with cedar ribs and planking; spruce 
gunwales and brass bang-plates to protect the ends. 
This canoe is covered with strong canvas, treated with 
some kind . of filler, and then painted and varnished. 
There are usually two cane seats, one at the stern, the 
other near the bow. These are built in. Canoes vary 
in the shape of the bow, some being higher than others. 
The high bow prevents the shipping of too much water, 
but will also offer resistance to the wind and so impede 
the progress of the boat. A medium high bow is the best. 

One firm of camp-outfitters advertises a canoe called the 
Sponson, the name being taken from the air-chambers 
built along the outside rail, which are called sponsons. 
It is claimed that these air-chambers make it next to im- 
possible to upset the canoe, and that even when filled with 
water it will support a heavy weight. Sponsons can also 



On and In the Water 209 

be purchased separately and can be adjusted to any sized 
canoe. 

For a novice the sponsons would seem a good thing, as 
they not only insure safety but, in doing away with the 
fear of an upset, make learning to paddle easier. Then 
there are the guide canoes made especially for hunting 
and fishing. They are strong, flat-bottomed, will carry 
a heavy load, are easy to paddle or pole, and will stand 
rough water. These canoes are good for general use on 
the trail. 

The prices of a good canoe range from twenty-eight 
dollars to forty dollars. One may go higher, of course, 
but the essentials of the canoe will be no better. A lower 
price means, as a rule, not so good a boat. 

Paddles 

Girls and women generally require shorter paddles than 
men, as they do not have the same reach of arm, and you 
can take your choice of lengths. For the stern the paddle 
should be longer than for the bow. Paddles are made of 
red oak, maple, ash, spruce, and cherry. Some authori- 
ties prefer spruce for ordinary usage, but in rough water 
and in shooting rapids a harder wood is best. The weak 
part of a paddle is where the blade joins the handle, and 
this part should not be too slender. If you use spruce 
paddles keep them smooth by trimming away all roughness 
and keep them well shellacked, else they may become 
water-soaked. Paddles range in price from, one dollar and 
fifty cents to three dollars. 

Accessories 

A strong, healthy girl will no more need cushions and 
canoe-chairs than a boy, but a back rest is not always to 



On and In the Water 211 

be despised. It is well to have a large sponge aboard for 
bailing and for cleaning. 

At a portage or " carry," the canoe is carried overland 
on the shoulders, and though some guides scorn to use 
a carrier, others are glad of them. There are several 
styles, one being the neck-yoke carrier, another the pneu- 
matic canoe-yoke. The pneumatic yoke, when not in- 
flated with air, can be rolled into a bundle three by six 
inches, and when inflated it can also be used for a canoe- 
seat, a camp-seat, and even for a pillow. Its weight is two 
pounds and the catalogue price is three dollars and twenty- 
five cents. 

Care of the Canoe 

Even the strongest canoe should be well cared for. 
To leave it in the water for any length of time, when 
not in use, is to run the risk of damage and loss. A sud- 
den storm will batter it against shore, send it adrift, or 
fill and sink it. A canoe should always be lifted, not 
dragged, ashore, and it should be turned upside down on 
the bank with a support in the middle so that it will not 
be strained by resting only on the ends. 

Getting in the Canoe 

Never allow any one to get into your canoe or to sit 
on it when it is out of the water. That is harder on it than 
many days of actual use. When you are to get aboard 
your canoe, bring it up broadside to the shore and put 
one foot exactly in the middle, then carefully place the 
other beside it and sit down quickly, but with care to 
keep your balance. If there is no one to hold the canoe 
for you, use your paddle to steady yourself by pushing 
it down to the bottom on the side away from shore. This 
will keep the canoe from slipping away from under you 



On and In the Water 213 

while you are stepping in. One of the first things to learn 
in canoeing is to preserve your balance; even a slight 
lurch to one side or the other must be avoided. Make 
every necessary movement cautiously and do not look 
backward unless absolutely necessary. Never attempt 
to change places with any one while in the canoe. If the 
change must be made, land and change there. 

Upset 

Should there be an upset keep hold of your paddle, 
it will help to keep you afloat, then if you can reach your 
craft and hold to it without trying to climb upon it you 
can keep your head above water until help arrives or until 
you can tread water to shore. If you can swim you are 
comparatively safe, and a girl who goes often on the trail 
should, by all means, be a swimmer. 

Paddling 

Some expert canoeists strongly advise kneeling in the 
bottom of the canoe while paddling, for at least part of 
the time, but the usual method is to sit on the seats pro- 
vided at bow and stern, or sit on the bottom. The kneel- 
ing paddler has her canoe in better control, and becomes 
more one with it than one who sits. In shooting rapids 
and in rough weather kneeling is the safest when one 
knows how to paddle in that position. It is a good thing 
to learn both methods. 

When you paddle close one hand firmly on the end of 
the paddle and the other around the handle a short 
distance above the blade. Then, keeping your body 
steady, dip your paddle into the water shghtly in front 
of you and sweep it backward and downward toward the 
stern, keeping it close to the canoe. You face the bow in 



214 On the Trail 

a canoe, remember, and reach forward for your stroke. 
At the finish of a stroke turn the paddle edgewise and sKde 
it out of the water. For the next stroke bring the blade 
forward, swinging it horizontally with the blade parallel 
to the water, and slide it edgewise into the water again in 
front of you. Fig. 34 shows the beginning of a stroke, 
Fig. 35 while the stroke is in progress, and Fig. 36 the 
ending. During the stroke bring your upper hand for- 
ward across your face or breast, and with the lower draw 
the blade through the water. 

It is well to begin as bow paddler, for your duty there, 
in smooth water, is to watch for obstructions such as hidden 
rocks and submerged logs or snags, while the paddler 
at the stern must steer the canoe and keep it in a straight 
course. 

At the beginning learn to paddle as well from one side 
as from the other. To be able to change sides is very 
restful and sometimes a quick change will prevent an 
accident. Like many other things, the knack of paddling 
will come with experience and will then require no more 
thought than keeping your balance on a bicycle and 
steering it. 

Loading a Canoe 

A top-heavy canoe is decidedly dangerous, that is why 
it is safest to sit or kneel on the bottom, and in loading 
your camp stuff bear the fact well in mind. Pack the load 
as low in the canoe as possible with the heaviest things 
at the bottom, but use common sense and do not put 
things that should be kept dry underneath where any 
water that is shipped will settle and soak them. Think 
again and put cooking utensils and lunch provender where 
you can reach them without unloading the canoe. The 
packing should be done in such a way as to cause the 




CO 





CO 




216 On the Trail 

canoe to tip neither at one end or at the other, and cer- 
tainly not to one side. 

Rowing 

A rowboat is a safer craft than a canoe, and rowing is 
not a difficult feat, but there is a difference between the 
rowing of a hea\y flat-bottomed boat and rowing a light 
skiff or round-bottomed rowboat. In rowing properly 
one's body does most of the work and the strain comes 
more on the muscles of the back than on those of the arms. 

In paddling you face the bow of the canoe; in rowing 
you are turned around and face the stern of your boat. 
In paddling you reach forward and draw your paddle 
back; in rowing you lean back and pull your oars for- 
ward. When beginning a stroke grasp the handles of 
your oars firmly near the ends, lean forward with arms 
outstretched and elbows straight, the oars slanting back- 
ward, and, by bearing down on the handles of the oars, 
lift the blades above the water. Then drop them in edge- 
wise and pull, straightening your body, bending your 
elbows, and bringing your hands together one above the 
other. As you finish the stroke bear down on your oars 
to lift the blades out of the water again, turn your wrists 
to bring the flat of the blades almost parallel with the 
water but with the back edge lifted a little; then bend 
forward and, sweeping the oars backward, turning the 
edge down, plunge them in the water for another pull. 
Turning the wrists at the beginning of a stroke feathers 
the oar, the forward edge of which is sometimes allowed 
to skim lightly over the surface of the water as the oar is 
carried backward. In steering with the oars you pull 
hardest on the oar on the side opposite to the direction 
you wish to take. A little practise and all this comes 
easy enough. 

The thing for a beginner to avoid is "catching a crab." 



On and In the Water 217 

That IS, dipping the oars so lightly in the water as not to 
give sufficient hold, which will cause them, when pulled 
forward, to fly up and send the rower sprawling on her 
back. In dipping too deeply there is danger of losing an 
oar by the suction of the water. Experience will teach 
the proper depth for the stroke. 

On some of the Adirondack lakes the round-bottomed 
rowboats are used almost exclusively, but the boat with 
a narrow, flat bottom is safer and is both light and easy 
to row. A cedar rowboat is the most desirable. The oars 
should be light for ordinary rowing yet strong enough to 
prevent their snapping above the blade in rough water. 

Rafts 

You can never tell just what will happen when you 
go on the long trail, that is one of its charms, nor do you 
know what you will be called upon to do. The girl best 
versed in the ways of the water as well as of the woods 
is surest of safety, and can be most helpful to her party. 
Possibly you may never be called upon to build a raft, 
and again an emergency may arise when a raft will not 
only be convenient but absolutely necessary. When such 
an emergency does come it is not likely that you will 
have anything besides the roughest of building material 
and no tools besides your small axe or hatchet. But with 
your axe you can chop off limbs of sufficient size for the 
raft from fallen trees, and with ropes made of the inner 
bark of trees you can bind your small logs together in such 
a way as to hold them firmly. Do not use green wood, it 
will not float like the dry. Logs about twelve inches in 
diameter are the best, but half that size will make a 
good raft. Six feet by twelve is a fair size. The smaller 
the logs the larger the raft must be in order to carry any 
weight, for it must cover a wider surface of water than is 



218 On the Trail 

necessary for one made of large logs. One good-sized log 
will carry your weight easily, but a small one will sink 
beneath you. 

If you have two long, strong ropes you can use them 
for binding the logs together; if not you must make the 
ropes from fibre of some kind. Daniel C. Beard in his 
book, " Boat-Building and Boating," tells of making 
a very strong rope of the inner bark of a chestnut-tree 
which had been killed by fire. The fibre torn off in long 
strips must be twisted by two persons, or one end may be 
tied to a branch while you twist the other. When two 
are twisting one person takes one end, the other takes the 
other end, and, standing as far apart as possible, each 
twists the fibre between her fingers, turning it in opposite 
directions until when held slack it will double on itself 
and make a double twist. The ends are then brought 
together and the rope kept from snarling until it is bent 
at the middle and allowed to double twist evenly all the 
way to the end. The fibre rope will be a little less than 
half the length of the original strands, and it should be 
about the size of heavy clothes-line rope. The short 
lengths of rope must be tied together to make two long 
ropes. Use the square knot in tying to make sure that 
it will not slip. When the knot is wet it will be quite 
secure. 

Primitive Weaving Method 

For tying the logs together use the primitive weaving 
method. Lay three lengths of rope on the ground, one 
for the middle and one each for the ends of the logs. Roll 
one log along the ropes until it rests across the middle 
of each rope, then turn each rope over the log, forming 
a bight as in Fig. 37. Bring the lower rope over the upper 
(Fig. 38) to form a loop, and turn it back over the log 
(Fig. 39). This leaves the log with three loops of rope 



220 On the Trail 

around it, one end of each rope lying on the ground, the 
other end turned back over the log. Now roll another 
log over the lower ropes up close to the first log (Fig. 40). 
Bring down the upper ropes over the second log (Fig. 41), 
cross the lower ropes over the upper ones and turn them 
back (Fig. 42). Draw the ropes tight and push the logs 
as closely together as possible; unless your logs are straight 
there will be wide spaces between. Roll the third log over 
the lower ropes and make the weaving loop as with the 
other two, always crossing the lower rope over the upper 
(Fig. 43). Continue weaving in new logs until the raft 
is the required width, then tie the ends of the ropes around 
the last log. Remember to keep the ropes on the ground 
always in a straight line without slanting them, other- 
wise the sides of your raft will not be at right angles to 
the ends, and it will be a crazily built affair, cranky and 
difficult to manage. 

Chop notches on the outside logs where the ropes are to 
pass over them, and they will keep the rope from slipping 
out of place (Fig. 44). Cut two, more slender, logs for the 
ends of the raft and lash them on across the others as in 
Fig. 45. The end logs should extend a little beyond each 
side of the raft. Fasten a rope with a strong slip knot 
to one end of the cross log and wrap it over the log and 
under the first lengthwise log, then over and under again 
to form a cross on top. Whon the rope is under the second 
time bring it up between the second and third log, then 
down between the third and fourth log, and so on to the 
end, when you must make a secure fastening. These 
cross logs give additional strength, keep the raft in shape, 
and prevent its shipping too much water. 

If you will make a miniature raft, following these direc- 
tions carefully, when the time comes for you to build a 
full-sized one you will be quite familiar with the method 
of construction and will know exactly how to go about it. 




Primitive weaving in raft building. 



22^ On the Trail 

For the little raft use small, straight branches about 
twelve inches long. Twist your slender rope of fibre if 
you can get it, of string if you cannot, and weave it 
around the sticks just as you would weave the rope 
around the logs, finishing off with the two end sticks for 
the end logs. 

Poling 

If you have a raft you must know how to pole it, and 
at times it is necessary to pole other kinds of craft. Select 
a straight pole of strong, green wood eight feet or more in 
length. The length of the pole will depend upon the 
depth of the water, for it must be long enough to reach 
bottom. Trim off all the small branches and make it as 
smooth as possible. 

When the water is deep and calm a pole may sometimes 
be used as a paddle to send the raft along, but its real 
purpose is to push from the bottom. In poling you must 
necessarily stand near the the edge of the raft and must 
therefore be careful not to lean too far over the water 
lest you lose your balance and fall in. 

Pohng is a primitive, go-as-you-please method of pro- 
pelling a craft and is almost free from rules except those 
suggested by the common sense of the poler. Like the 
early pioneers, you simply do the best you can under the 
circumstances and are alert to take advantage of every 
element in your favor. Where there is a current you pole 
for it and then allow your raft to float with it, provided 
it goes in the direction you wish to take and is not too 
swift. In this case you use your pole for steering, which 
may sometimes be done from the stern, making a rudder 
of the pole, at others from the side, and at times reaching 
down to the river bed. If the current runs the wrong 
way be careful to keep out of it as much as possible. 

Shallow water near the shore is usually the most quiet 



On and In the Water 223 

and the safest for a raft. Here you can generally pole 
your raft up-stream when the water is deep enough to 
float it and is not obstructed by rocks, logs, or snags. 
A raft is not safe where there is a swift current, and there 
should always be strong arms to manage it. 

Swimming 

If you will realize that your body is buoyant, not a 
dead weight in the water, and that swimming should 
come as naturally to you as to the wild creatures, it may 
help you to gain the confidence so essential in learning to 
swim. If you are not afraid of the water you will not 
struggle while in it, and the air in your lungs will keep 
you afloat while you learn to make the movements that 
will carry you along. You will not sink if you are quite 
calm and move only your hands under water with a slight 
paddling movement. Keep in mind that every inch 
above water but adds so much to the weight to sink you 
lower. To throw up your arms is the surest way of going 
straight to the bottom. Do not be afraid to allow the 
water to come up and partially cover your chin. 

All sorts of contrivances have been invented to keep a 
person afloat while learning to swim, but they all tend 
to take from, rather than to give confidence, for it is 
natural to depend entirely upon them and to feel help- 
less when they are taken away. According to my own 
experience the best method is to have a friend place 
a hand under your chin while her feet are touching 
bottom and to walk with you while you learn to make 
the swimming movements. This will keep your head 
above water and give you a sense of security, and 
you will then strike out confidently. The support ren- 
dered is so slight you learn to manage your own weight 
in the water almost immediately, while you have the feel- 



224 On the Trail 

ing that some one upholds you, and the friendly hand may 
be withdrawn at intervals to allow you to try entirely 
alone. 

You see that after all it is the feeling of being supported 
more than the actual support that counts, and if you can 
convince yourself that you need no support you won't 
need it. It is best to start by swimming toward land in- 
stead of away from it. To know that you are not going 
beyond your depth but are gaining the shore is a great 
help in conquering fear. 

Movements in Swimming 

If you are learning alone, begin in quiet, shallow water 
only deep enough to float you; waist-high is sufficiently 
deep. Assume the first position for swimming by throw- 
ing your body forward with arms extended and palms 
of hands together, at the same time lifting your feet from 
the bottom with a spring. This should bring your body 
out perfectly straight in the water, feet together and arms 
ready for the first movement. 

Now separate your hands, turn them palm outward, 
and swing your arms around in a half -circle until they 
' extend straight out from the sides, pushing the water 
back with your hands. In the second movement bend 
your elbows and bring them down with palms of hands 
together under your chin, and at the same time draw 
your legs up under your body with knees and feet still held 
close together. The third movement is to send your arms 
shooting straight ahead, while your legs, separating, de- 
scribe a half-circle and your feet pushing against the water 
force you forward and then come together again in the 
first position. 

This is a point to be remembered: always thrust your 
hands forward, to open the way, and your feet back. 




The Friendly Hand 

UNDE:R^t>uR. Chin 

WIllGiive You 

doNFJDENCE. 



LcARNloT^EADNAATeR 

For £)afety 



Learn to be at home in the water. 



226 On the Trail 

to push yourself through it, at the same time. It is like 
a wire spring being freed at both ends at once, each end 
springing away from the middle. When you push the 
spring together, that is, when in taking the second move- 
ment you draw in your hands and feet, do it slowly; then 
take the third movement — letting the spring out — quickly, 
thrusting out your hands in front and your feet at the 
back with a sudden movement, pushing your feet strongly 
against the water and stretching yourself out as far as 
you can reach. 

Floating 

Some people can float who cannot swim. Others can 
swim but are not able to float. That is, they think they 
are not and do not seem willing to try, but it is quite 
necessary every one should know how to rest in the 
water, and learning to float is very essential. 

The hand of a friend will help you in this as in learning 
to swim, but for floating it is held under the back of your 
head instead of under your chin. Lie on your back with 
legs straight before you, feet together, arms close at your 
sides, and head thrown back; trust the water to bear you 
up and all that is necessary to keep you afloat is a rotary 
motion of your hands under water. After a time all 
movement may be given up and you will lie easily and 
quietly as on a bed. It is said that it is easier for women 
and girls to float than for men, because their bones are 
lighter, and some learn to float the first time they enter the 
water; all of which is very encouraging to girls. Breathe 
deeply but naturally while floating, for the more air there 
is in your lungs the more buoyant will be your body and 
the higher it will float. If your body is inclined to roll 
from side to side spread out your arms I'nder water untfl 
you steady yourself. If your feet persist in sinking ex- 



On and In the Water 227 

tend your arms above your head under water and this 
will maintain the balance. 

Do not try to lift your head, but keep it well back in 
the water. If your nose and mouth are out that is all 
that is necessary. Let your muscles relax and lie limply. 

To regain your feet after floating bring your arms in 
front and pull on the water with scooped hands while 
raising your body from the hips. 

Diving 

You will learn to dive merely for the joy of the quick 
plunge into cool waters, but there are times when to under- 
stand diving may mean the saving of your own or some 
one else's life, and no matter how suddenly or unexpectedly 
you are cast into the water by accident, you will retain 
your self-possession and be able to strike out and swim 
immediately. 

One should never dive into unknown water if it can be 
avoided, but as on the trail all water is likely to be un- 
known, investigate it well before diving and look out for 
hidden rocks. Do not dive into shallow water; that is 
dangerous. If you are to dive from the bank some 
distance above the water, stand on the edge with your 
toes reaching over it. Extend your arms, raise them, and 
duck your head between with your arms, forming an arch 
above, your ears covered by your arms. Lock your 
thumbs together to keep your hands from separating 
when they strike the water. Bend your knees slightly 
and spring from them, but straighten them immediately 
so that you will be stretched full length as you enter the 
water. As soon as your body is in the water curve your 
back inward, lift your head up, and make a curve through 
the water to the surface. 



228 On the Trail 



Breathing 

Breathe through your nose always when swimming as 
well as when walking. To open your mouth while swim- 
ming is usually to swallow a pint or two of water. Exhale 
your breath as you thrust your hands forward, inhale it 
as you bring them back. ''Blow your hands from you." 

Treading Water 

In treading water you maintain an upright position as 
in walking. Some one says: "To tread water is like run- 
ning up-stairs rapidly." Try running up-stairs and you 
will get the leg movement. While the water is up to your 
neck, bend your elbows and bring your hands to the surface, 
then keep the palms pressing down the water. The princi- 
ple is the same as in swimming. When you swim you force 
the water back with your hands and feet and so send your 
body forward. When you tread water you force the water 
down with your hands and feet and so send your body, or 
keep it, up. 

It is even possible to stand quite still in deep water 
when you learn to keep your balance. All you do is to 
spread out your arms at the sides on a line with your 
shoulders and keep your head well back. You may go 
below the surface once or twice until you learn, but you 
will come up again and the feat is well worth while. What 
an outdoor girl should strive for is to become thoroughly 
at home in the water so that she may enter it fearlessly 
and know what to do when she is there. 

Fishing 

Just here would seem to be the place to talk of fishing, 
but I am not going to try to tell you how to fish; that 



230 On the Trail 

would take a volume, there are so many kinds of fish and 
so many ways of fishing. One way is to cut a slender 
pole, tie a fish-line on the small end, tie a fish-hook to 
the end of the line, bait it with an angleworm, stand on 
the bank, drop the hook and bait into the water, and await 
results. Another way is to put together a delicate, quiver- 
ing fishing-rod, -carefully select a " fly," adjust it, stand 
on the bank, or in a boat, and "cast " the fly far out on 
the water with a dexterous turn of the wrist. You may 
catch fish in either way, but in some cases the pole and 
angleworm is the surest. 

A visitor stood on the bank of our Pike County lake 
and skilfully sent his fly skimming over the water while 
the boy of the family, catching perch with his home-cut 
pole and angleworms, was told to watch and learn. He 
did watch politely for a while, then turned again to his 
own affairs. Once more some one said: " Look at Mr. J., 
boy, and learn to cast a fly." But the boy, placidly fishing, 
returned: " I'd rather know how to catch fish." It was 
true the boy had caught the fish and the skilful angler 
had not. All of which goes to prove that if it is fish you 
want, just any kind of fish and not the excitement of the 
sport, a pole like the boy's will probably be equal to all 
requirements. But there are black bass in the lake, and 
had one of them been in that particular part of it, no doubt 
the fly would have tempted him, and the experience and 
skill of Mr. J. supplemented by his long, flexible rod, his 
reel and landing net, would have done the rest, while the 
boy had little chance of such a bite and almost none of 
landing a game fish like the bass. 

. If you want to fish, and every girl on the trail should 
know how, take it up in a common-sense way and learn 
from an experienced person. Own a good, serviceable 
rod and fishing tackle and let it be your business to know 
why they are good. Make up your mind to long, patient. 




The veteran. 



232 On the Trail 

trying waits, to early and late excursions, and to some dis- 
appointments. Take a fisherman's luck cheerfully and 
carry the thing through like a true sportsman. There is 
one thing to remember which sportsmen sometimes forget 
in the excitement of the game and that is not to catch more 
fish than you have use for. One need not be cruel even to 
cold-blooded fish, nor need one selfishly grab all one can 
get merely for the sake of the getting and without a 
thought for those who are to come after. We have all 
heard of good fishing places which have been "fished 
out," and that could not be if the fishermen had taken 
only as many as they could use. This rule holds good 
all through the wild: Take what you need, it is yours, 
but all the rest belongs to others. 



CHAPTER XI 

USEFUL KNOTS AND HOW TO TIE THEM 

Square Knots. Hitching Knots. Other Knots. 

Every outdoor girl should know what knots to use for 
various purposes and how to tie them, but only those 
which will be found useful on the trail are given here. 

Terms Used in Knot-Tying 

There are three different kinds of bends that are given 
a rope in the process of tying a knot, and each bend has 
its own name. You must learn these in order to under- 
stand the directions for knot-tying; they are: the hight, 
the loop, and the round turn. 

The bight (Fig. 46) is made by bending the rope so 
that the sides are parallel. The loop (Fig. 47) is made by 
lapping one rope of the bight across the other. The round 
turn (Fig. 48) is made by carrying one rope of the loop 
all the way around to the other side, making half of the 
loop double. 

Square Knot 

This is probably what you would at first call a hard 
knot, and so it is a hard knot to come untied of itself or 
to slip, but it is easy to untie when necessary. The hard 
knot most people tie is not quite the same as the square 
knot, though it does resemble it. 

The ordinary hard knot is what is known as the granny 
knot, a slurring name which means a failure. The granny 

233 



234 On the Trail 

knot will not always stay tied, it often slips and it cannot 
be trusted when absolute security is needed. 

Begin the square knot with the single first tie (Fig. 49). 
You see the end X turns up over the other rope while the 
end laps under the rope. Now bring the two ends to- 
gether, lapping X over (Fig. 50). Then pass X back 
under 0, making the single tie once more. Now com- 
pare what you have done with Fig. 51. Notice in the 
drawing that the ends of rope X are both over the right- 
hand bight, and the ends of rope O are both under the 
left-hand bight. Draw the square knot tight and it 
looks like Fig. 52. 

You cannot make a mistake in tying the square knot 
if you remember to notice which end is on top, or laps 
over the other rope when the first single tie is made (Fig. 
49), and then be sure to lap this same end over the other 
end in making the second tie which finishes the knot. 

Figure-Eight Knot 

Use the figure-eight knot to make a knot on the end of 
a rope or to prevent the end of the strands from untwist- 
ing. Form a loop like Fig. 53 near the end of the rope, 
bringing the short end over the long rope; then pass the 
short end under the long rope once, as shown by dotted 
line, and carry it up over and through the loop (Fig. 54). 
Pull it up tightly to bring the end square across the rope 
(Fig. 55). This knot is not difficult to untie. 

Bow-Line Knot 

To form a loop that will not slip and yet may be easily 
untied use the bow-line knot. 

(i) When the loop is not fastened to anything use the 
overhand method of tying it. First measure off sufficient 






48 

Round turn. 



Bends Im KwotIyinGj 




S9UARE 

|f\NOT 






236 On the Trail 

rope for the loop you wish to make and hold the place 
with your left hand (this place is indicated by the arrow 
in Fig. 56) ; then with your right hand throw the short end 
of the rope over the long rope (Fig. 56). Still holding 
the short end with your right hand, with the left hand 
bring the long rope up to form a loop over the end (Fig. 
57). Now with your right hand take up the end, draw it 
farther through the loop, and pass it behind the long rope 
above the loop, from right to left (Fig. 58). Bring the 
end forward again and slip it downward through the loop 
(Fig. 59). Draw the knot tight and it cannot slip, no 
matter how great the strain. 

(2) Use the underhand method when the loop is passed 
around something or through a ring. This loop may be put 
around the neck of a horse or cow without danger of injury, 
for it will not slip and tighten. It can also be used in place 
of the hitching tie. 

Slip the rope through the ring, or around the object, 
from left to right while you hold the long rope in your 
left hand. Take a half-hitch around the long rope, pass- 
ing the end over the long rope, then under it. This makes 
a loop like Fig. 60. Transfer this loop from the short rope 
to the long rope by holding loosely, or giving slack, with 
the left hand and pulling up with the right. A little 
practise will enable you to do this easily. Fig. 61 shows 
the loop transferred to the long rope with the short end 
passing through it. At this stage carry the short end over, 
then under the long rope beloiv the loop (Fig. 62), then 
up and through the loop as in Fig. 63. Tighten the knot 
by pulling on both the long rope and the short end. 

Sheep-Shank Knot 

It is sometimes necessary to shorten a rope temporarily 
and not desirable to cut it, and the sheep-shank knot 





'' 



55 



TlGjUF^E ElGjHT I^NOT 







OvER»-4/\rs»0 



238 On the Trail 

solves the problem. It is used by the sailors, who do not 
believe in cutting ropes. It will stand a tremendous 
strain without slipping, but will loosen when held slack, 
and can be untied by a quick jerk of the two outside ropes 
forming the bights. 

Begin by bending the rope to form two bights as in ^ , 
Fig. 64, carry the single rope over at the top of the bend, 
then under to form a half-hitch as in B. Do the same with 
the other single rope at the bottom of the bend C, and 
draw both ends tight (D). With a little practise this can 
be done very quickly. If the rope is to be permanently 
shortened pass the ends through the first and second 
bights at the bend as in E, and the knot will hold for any 
length of time. 

The Parcel Slip-Knot 

This is the simplest of all knots to start with in tying 
up a parcel. Begin by making a knot about one inch from, 
the end of your twine, using the single tie like F (Fig. 65). 
If this does not make the knot large enough use the figure- 
eight knot. The single tie is sufficient in ordinary cases. 
Wrap your twine once around your parcel, lapping the 
long twine over the knotted end as in G. Bring the knotted 
end over the long twine, forming a bight, then over and 
under its own twine with the single tie (H). Draw the tie 
up close to the knot at the end; the knot prevents it from 
slipping off. Now the long twine may be drawn tight 
or loosened at will, and will hold the first wrap in place 
while the twine is being wrapped around the package in 
a different place. 

Cross-Tie Parcel Knot 

When you have two or more parallel twines on your 
parcel and have begun to bring down the cross-line, secure 
it to each twine in this way: Bring the long twine down 







Un DERM AND HOVVLINE I^OT 







FlGj64- 



"Smears 



H/\JNK |\NOT 



IVs 



240 On the Trail 

and loop it under the first twine to form a bight as in / 
(Fig. 66). 

Then carry the long twine over, itself forming a loop 
(/), then under the first twine as in K. 

Draw tight and proceed to the second twine, making 
the same cross-tie. 

When you have carried your cross-line entirely around 
the parcel, tie it securely to the first twine where it began 
and finish with a single-tie knot, making a knot on the 
last end of the twine close to the fastening, to keep the 
end from slipping through. 

Fisherman's Knot 

The fisherman's knot is used by fishermen to tie silk- 
worm gut together. It is easily untied by pulling the 
two short ends, but it never slips. Lay the two ropes 
side by side {L, Fig. 67), then make a loop around one rope 
with the other rope, passing the end under both ropes 
(M). Bring the end over and into the loop to make a 
single tie (N). Tie the end of the second rope around the 
first rope in the same manner (N) and draw both knots 
tight (0). 

Halter, Slip, or Running Knot 

The halter or slip knot is often convenient, but should 
never be used around the neck of an animal, for if either 
end is pulled it will slip and tighten, thereby strangling 
the creature. 

First form a bight, then with one end of the rope make 
a single tie around the other rope (Fig. 68). 

Half-Hitch 

If you have anything to do with horses or boats you 
must know how to make the proper ties for hitching the 



■.^' ■ 


/■ 

J 


h 




G, 






H 




r.<^_ 


65 








F>\?\CEL- ^Lifl^NOT 





df^OSb-TI E "RnF^CEI-I^OT 



^M 



u 




1 



i 



fiG,67 

FlSHEFtr-lAN'S IV^OT 



242 On the Trail 

horse to a post, or a boat to a tree, stump, or anything 
else that is handy. 

The half-hitch is a loop around a rope with the short 
end secured under the loop (Fig. 69). This answers for 
a temporary, but not a secure, fastening. 

Timber-Hitch 

When you want a temporary fastening, secure yet easily 
undone, make a timber-hitch (Fig. 70). Pass the rope 
around an object, take a half -hitch around the rope, and 
pass the short end once more between the rope and the 
object. 

Hitching Tie 

If the hitching tie is properly made, and the knot 
turned to the right of the post, the stronger the pull on 
the long end of the rope, the tighter the hold, and the loop 
will not slip down even on a smooth, plain post. If the 
knot is turned to the left, or is directly in front, the loop 
will not pull tight and will slide down. For the reason 
that the loop will tighten, the hitching tie should never 
be used around the neck of a horse, as it might pull tight 
and the animal be strangled. 

In making the hitching tie, first pass the rope from left 
to right around the post, tree, or stump; bring it together 
and hold in the left hand. The left hand is represented 
by the arrow (Fig. 71). With the right hand throw the 
short end of the rope across the ropes in front of the left 
hand, forming a loop below the left hand (Fig. 72). Slip 
the right hand through this loop, grasp the rope just in 
front, and pull it back to form a bight, as you make a 
chain-stitch in crocheting (Fig. 73). Down through this 
last bight pass the end of the rope and pull the knot tight 
(Fig. 74). 





71 // 72 

The halter, slip-knot, and hitching- tie. 



CHAPTER XII 

ACCIDENTS 

Sprains. Bruises. Burns. Cuts. Sunstroke. Drowning 

One learns quickly how to take care of oneself while 
on the trail, and serious accidents seldom occur. In fact, 
every member of the party takes pride in keeping herself 
free from accident; it is so like a tenderfoot to get hurt. 
However, it is well to be prepared in case accidents do 
occur, and this chapter is intended to forearm you that 
you may not stand helplessly by when your aid is needed. 

Sprains and Bruises 

The best immediate treatment for ordinary sprains and 
bruises is the application of cloths dipped in very hot 
water. This takes out the soreness and prevents inflamma- 
tion. As soon as one application cools a little, a hot one 
should take its place, as hot as can be borne without scald- 
ing the flesh. Very cold water can be used when hot is 
not obtainable. For a sprained ankle or wrist continue 
this treatment for a while and then bind smoothly and 
firmly with a clean cotton bandage. Keep as quiet as 
possible with a sprained ankle, and if the accident occurs 
when on a walk the fireman's lift may be used for carrying 
the injured person to camp. 

Fireman's Lift 

To be able to use the fireman's lift may be to save a 
life, as it can be employed when there is but one person 

244 




The fireman's lift. 



246 On the Trail 

to do the carrying. With practise any girl of ordinary 
strength can lift and carry another of her own size or 
even larger. 

In order to make the lift easy, instruct the patient to 
relax all her muscles and become perfectly limp; then 
turn her on her face, stand over her body with one foot 
at each side, face toward the patient's head. Lean for- 
ward and place your hands under her arms, then gently 
raise her to her knees, next slide your hands quickly down 
around her body at the low waist-line, lifting her at the 
same time to her feet. Immediately grasp her right wrist 
with your left hand, and pass your head under her right 
arm and your right arm under one or both of her knees, 
shifting the patient's hips well on your shoulders, rise 
to a standing position and carry patient away. 

Cuts 

The accidents that most frequently happen are simple 
cuts and bruises. 

For a slight cut wash the wound in lukewarm water 
to remove all dirt or foreign matter, then press the lips 
or sides together and hold them in place with strips of 
court-plaster or surgeon's adhesive plaster. Do not cover 
the entire wound with the plaster, but put strips across 
at right angles with the cut, leaving a space between 
every two strips and using only enough plaster to keep 
the cut closed. Cover the hurt part with a bandage to 
protect it from further injury. 

When an Artery is Cut 

When an artery is cut the wound is more serious and 
the bleeding must be stopped immediately. When the 
blood comes from an artery it is bright red in color and 





Blanket stretcher. 



Aids in "first aid.' 



us On the Trail 

flows copiously in spurts or jets. The blood in the arteries 
is flowing away from the heart, therefore you must stop 
it between the cut and the heart. It is the arteries in the 
arms and legs that are most likely to be injured. In the 
arm the large artery runs down the inner side of the upper 
arm. In the leg the artery runs down the inner side of 
the upper leg. 

The Tourniquet 

To stop the bleeding press the artery above the wound 
firmly with your fingers while some one prepares a tourni- 
quet. Use a handkerchief, a necktie, or anything of the 
kind for a tourniquet; tie it loosely around the limb and 
in the bandage place a smooth stone (or something that 
will take its place), adjusting it just above your fingers 
on the artery. Then slip a strong, slender stick about 
ten inches long under the bandage at the outer side of 
the arm or leg and turn the stick around like the hand of 
a clock, until the stone presses the artery just as your 
fingers did. Tie the stick above and below the bandage 
to keep it from untwisting. 

Do not forget that the tourniquet is cutting off circula- 
tion, and for this to continue very long is dangerous. It 
is not safe to keep it on more than one hour without 
loosening. If the hand or foot grows cold and numb before 
that time loosen the tourniquet and rub briskly to restore 
circulation. Should the wound begin to bleed again when 
the tourniquet is loosened, be ready to tighten at once. 

In case of an accident of this kind summon a physician, 
vif one can be reached quickly. If not, take the patient to 
the nearest doctor, for the artery must be tied as soon as 
possible and only a physician or skilful trained nurse can 
do that part of the work. 



Accidents 249 



Emergency Stretchers 

Loss of blood is too weakening to permit of the patient 
walking, and the exertion may start the wound bleeding 
again, so a stretcher of some kind must be contrived in 
which she may be carried. You can make a good emer- 
gency stretcher of two strong poles of green wood, one 
large blanket, and the ever-useful horse-blanket safety- 
pins. The poles should be about six feet long, of a size 
to clasp easily in your hand, and as smooth as they can 
be made with hurried work. They should, at least, be free 
from jagged stumps or branches and twigs. 

Begin by folding the blanket through the middle over 
one of the poles, then pin the blanket together with the 
large safety-pins, with the pins about six inches apart, to 
hold the pole in place. That finishes one side; for the 
other, lap the two edges of the blanket over the second 
pole and pin them down like a hem. The stretcher will 
be of double thickness and will hold the injured person 
comfortably. 

If a serious accident should occur some distance from 
camp and there are no blankets to use, do not hesitate 
to appropriate for a stretcher whatever you have with 
you. When there is nothing else cut your khaki skirt 
into strips about twelve inches wide and tie the ends to 
two poles (the poles need not be smooth except at the 
ends), leaving spaces between. 

Burns and Scalds 

Personally I have repudiated the old method of treat- 
ing simple burns and scalds and, instead of applying oil 
or flour, have discovered for myself that simply holding 
a slightly burned finger or hand in a running stream of 



250 ' On the Trail 

cold water not only gives instant relief but prevents the 
pain from returning in any severity. Care of the injured 
part to prevent the skin from breaking and causing a sore 
is the only thing left to be done. However, here are the 
ordinary remedies for burns. Any of the following things 
spread over a piece of linen or soft cotton cloth are said to 
be good: olive-oil, carbolized vaseline, fresh lard, cream, 
flour, and baking-soda. For serious burns a physician 
should be called. 

Heat Prostration and Sunstroke 

This will seldom occur in a camp of healthy girls whose 
stomachs and blood are in good order, but it is best not 
to expose oneself to the fierce rays of the sun during a 
period of intense heat, or directly after eating. In case 
any one is overcome and complains of feeling faint, and of 
dizziness and throbbing head, take her where it is cool, 
in the shade if possible, lay her down, loosen her clothing, 
and apply cold water to her face and head. She will 
probably be able to walk when she revives, but if not, 
carry her home or into camp. Do not give whiskey, brandy, 
or any stimulants. 

Cinder or Foreign Substance in the Eye 

As a rule all that is necessary to remove ''something" 
in your eye is to take the eyelashes of the upper lid be- 
tween your thumb and forefinger and pull the lid down 
over the lower one. The lower lashes thus shut in, com- 
bined with the tears that flood the eye, will clean the eye 
in most cases. 

If the cinder or other substance is embedded in the 
upper lid, roll back the lid over a match (the sulphur end 
taken off), then moisten a corner of a handkerchief and 



Accidents 251 

with it remove the cinder. If this treatment does not 
avail and the substance cannot be removed, put a drop 
of olive-oil in the eye, close it and cover with a soft band- 
age, then go to a physician. Do not put anything stiff or 
hard into the eye. 

Fainting 

Fainting occurs most often in overheated and over- 
crowded places where the air is impure. The proper 
treatment is to lay the patient flat on her back with the 
head lower than the rest of the body and feet raised; then 
loosen the clothes at waist and neck, sprinkle the face 
and neck with cold water, and hold smelling salts or am- 
monia to the nostrils. Insist upon giving her all the fresh 
air possible. It is good also to rub the limbs with the 
motion upward toward the body. 

Drowning — Shafer Method 

Secure a doctor if possible, but do not wait for him. 
Do not wait for anything; what you do, do instantly. 

As soon as the rescued person is out of the water begin 
treatment to restore respiration, that is, to make her 
breathe. If you can do this her life will probably be saved. 
Not until the patient breathes naturally must you work 
to bring warmth and circulation to the body. To promote 
circulation before the patient breathes naturally may en- 
danger her life. 

First quickly loosen the clothes at waist and neck; then 
turn the patient face downward on the ground with face 
either downward or turned to one side, arms extended 
above the head, and with chest raised slightly from the 
ground and resting upon your folded skirt. Also place 
something beneath her forehead to raise her nose and 
mouth from the ground. This will allow the tongue to 



252 On the Trail 

fall forward. If it does not, grasp it with handkerchief 
and pull forward; this will permit the water to run out 
and will provide room for breathing. 

As in cases of fainting, so with drowning patient, she 
must have all the air possible, for she is being suffocated 
with water, so do not allow a crowd to form around her. 
Keep every one back except those assisting in the actual 
work of restoration. 

With the patient in the position described, kneel by 
her side or, better still, astride of her, and let your hands 
fall into the spaces between the short ribs. With your 
fingers turned outward and your weight falling upon the 
palms of your hands, press steadily downward and forward 
to expel the air from the lungs. Hold this position a 
fraction of a second, count four, then gradually release the 
pressure to allow the air to enter again through the throat. 
Count four, and again press down. Continue this treat- 
ment for a while, then, using another method, slip your 
hands under the patient at the waist-line and lift her up 
sufficiently to allow her head to hang down as in illustra- 
tion. 

Lower her gently and lift again. Do this several times. 
You will find that the movement will force the Water 
from the lungs out of the mouth and help to produce 
artificial respiration. 

Return to the first method and continue the treatment 
until the breath comes naturally. It may be an hour or 
two before there are any signs of life such as a gasp or 
slight movement, then the breath must be carefully aided 
by more gentle pressure until it comes easily without help. 

Do not give up hope, and do not stop working. The work 
may be continued many hours if done in relays, that is, 
several girls taking part, each one in her turn. Remember, 
however, the treatment must be continuous and no time 
be allowed to elapse when the change is being made. 




Restoring respiration. 



254 On the Trail 



After Respiration Begins 

With returning breath the first corner in recovery has 
been turned, but the after treatment is very important. 
To restore circulation, begin by rubbing the Hmbs upward 
with a firm pressure. This sends the blood to the heart. 
Warmth must now be supplied by blankets heated before 
a fire, and hot stones or bricks may be placed at the thighs 
and at the soles of the feet. Or the patient should be 
wrapped in a warm blanket, placed on a stretcher, car- 
ried to camp, or to a house, and put to bed. Here hot- 
water bottles may be used, and as soon as it is possible 
for her to swallow, if nothing else can be obtained, give 
a little strong, hot coffee, unsweetened and without milk. 
Lastly, keep the patient quiet and let her sleep. 

Nosebleed 

The simplest method of stopping the nosebleed is to 
hold something cold on the back of the neck (a large key 
will do) and pinch the nostrils together; also cool the fore- 
head with water and hold the arms above the head. This 
is usually effective. 



CHAPTER XIII 
CAMP FUN AND FROLICS 

Active Sports and Games. Evenings in Camp. Around the 
Camp-Fire. Quiet Games, Songs, and Stories. Lighting 
Fires Without a Match 

Camp fun should have a place, and an important one, 
in your plans for the trail. For the time being the camp 
is your home and it should never be allowed to become 
dull for want of a little gayety and wholesome amusement. 
In a permanent camp there will be days when the entire 
party will be loafing and then is the time to start a frolic 
of some kind. 

Obstacle Races 

Competitive sports are always entertaining, and races, 
of one kind or another, are the most exciting. The Boy 
Scouts have a race in which the competitors drop first 
their staffs, then their hats, their neckties, leggins, and, 
finally struggling out of the blouse of their uniform, they 
drop that also. All this must be done while on the way 
and before they cross a given line. At the line they turn 
to go back over the course and, while running, take up 
their various belongings and put them on before they 
reach the home goal. 

A race planned on these lines will be most amusing. 
A smooth course is not necessary, you probably won't 
have it at camp, and to get over the uneven ground, with 
the detentions of first dropping, then picking up the articles 
dropped, will add to the excitement of the sport. An 

255 



25Q On the Trail 

entertaining variation of this will be to have those taking 
part in the race appear in impromptu costumes (worn over 
the ordinary dress) which they must remove piece by piece 
as they run and put the things all on again while return- 
ing over the course. Such hastily adjusted costumes can- 
not help but be funny. 

Medals 

The winner of the race should be given a medal as a 
prize. The medal can be made of any handy material. 
A tin circular disk cut from the top of a tin can will do. 
Drive a nail through this tin medal near the edge and 
pass a string through the hole so that it may be hung 
around the neck of the winner. Or instead of giving a 
medal, the victor may be crowned, like the ancient Greeks, 
with a wreath of leaves. 

Blindfold Obstacle Walk 

Another amusing camp sport is the blindfold obstacle 
walk. Place six or eight good-sized stones on the ground 
in a row, about two feet apart. The stones should be 
flat on top so that you can stand a tin cup filled with water 
on each stone. Let one member of the party make a 
trial trip over the cups, stepping between them as she 
passes down the row; then blindfold her, place two 
people as a guard, one on each side of her, to hold her 
hands and prevent a fall, and let them lead her to the end 
of the line of cups and tell her to go over it again. 

The guard will steady her in case she stumbles but 
must in no way guide her course aright. The stepper 
will step high and be absurdly careful not to kick over 
one of the cups, for wet feet would probably be the result. 
Sometimes the stepper will leave the line of her own ac- 
cord; sometimes her guard will purposely, and without 



Camp Fun and Frolics 257 

her knowing it, lead her off the course and then her care- 
ful, high steps over nothing add to the fun of the on- 
lookers. 

Any number may take part in the sport, and in turn 
act as stepper. At the end a prize should be given by 
vote to the one who afforded the greatest amusement. 

Hunting the Quail 

This is something like the old game of hide-and-seek, 
with which all girls are familiar, and it will not be difficult 
to learn. The players are divided into "hunter" and 
"quails." The hunter is "It," and any counting-out 
rhyme will decide who is to take that part. When the 
hunter, with closed eyes, has counted her hundred, and 
the quails have scurried away to their hiding-places behind 
trees, bushes, or rocks, the hunt begins, and at the same 
time begins the cry of the quails: "Bob- White! Bob- 
White! Bob-White!" These calls, coming from every 
direction, are very bewildering, and the hunter must be 
alert to detect the direction of one particular sound and 
quick to see the fhght of a quail and catch her before she 
can reach the home goal and find shelter there. The first 
quail caught becomes hunter in her turn, and the noisy, 
rollicking game continues as long as the players wish. 
Another romping game is called 

Trotting-Horse 

It is warranted to put in circulation even the most slug- 
gish blood and to warm the coldest feet, and it is fine for 
the almost frosty weather we sometimes have in the 
mountains. 

The players form a circle in marching order; that is, 
each girl faces the back of another, with a space between 
every two players. Trotting-horse, the "It" of the game. 



258 On the Trail 

stands in the centre of the circle. When she gives the 
signal, the players forming the circle begin to run round 
and round, keeping the circle intact, while trotting-horse, 
always trotting, tries to slip between the ranks, which 
close up to prevent her escape. Trotting-horse must 
trot, not run. If she runs when making her escape she 
must go back into the ring and try once more to break 
away. When she succeeds fairly in getting through the 
ranks the player in front of whom she slips becomes "It" 
and takes the place of trotting-horse. 

Wood Tennis 

Wood tennis is of the woods, woodsy. Green pine-cones 
take the place of balls; hands, of rackets; and branches, 
of tennis-net. Lay out a regular tennis-court by scraping 
the lines in the earth, or outlining the boundaries with 
sticks or other convenient materials. Build a net of 
branches by sticking the ends in the ground, and collect a 
number of smooth, green cones for balls. 

Wood tennis must, of necessity, differ somewhat from 
the regulation game. Since pine-cones will not bounce 
and there are no rackets for striking them, they must be 
tossed across the net, caught in the hands, and quickly 
tossed back. In other respects the rules of the established 
game may be used entire or simplified if desired. 

Around the Camp-Fire 

When darkness creeps through the woods, closing in 
closer and closer; when it blots out, one by one, the familiar 
landmarks and isolates the httle camp in a sea of night, 
with the mutual wish for nearer companionship, we gather 
around the camp-fire, the one light in all the great dark- 
ness. We are grateful for its warmth, as the evenings are . 
chill, and its cheery blaze and crackle bring a feeling of 



260 On the Trail 

hominess and comfort welcome to every one. If there are 
men in the party they light their pipes and then begin 
the stories of past experiences on the trail, which are of 
the keenest interest to all campers. These stories, told 
while one gazes dreamily into the glowing coals of the fire 
or looks beyond the light into the mysterious blackness 
of the forest, have a charm that is wanting under different 
surroundings. The stories are not confined to the men, 
for in these days when girls and women are also on the 
trail, they too can relate things worth the telling. 

Songs 

Then come the songs. If there is some one in the party 
who can lead in singing, she can use a familiar air with 
a rousing chorus as a frame upon which to hang impromptu 
verses, made up of personalities and local hits. This is 
always fun and you are surprised how quickly doggerel 
rhymes suggest themselves when your turn comes to 
furnish a verse to the song. 

The leader begins something like this, using, perhaps, 
the air and refrain of an old chantey or college song. 

Leader 
"I spotted a beaver, 
But he wasn't very nye." 

Chorus 
"Don't you rock so hard!" 

Second Soloist 
"His fur was all ragged 
And he had but one eye." 

Chorus 
"Don't you rock so hard. 
Oh ! You rock and I rock, and 
Don't you rock so hard ! 



Camp Fun and Frolics 261 

Everybody rocks when I rock, and 
Don't you rock so hard." 

Third Soloist 
"You may laugh at the beaver, 
But he's always up to time." 

Chorus 
"Don't you rock so hardl" 

Fourth Soloist * 

"Oh, do drop the beaver, 
And start a new rhyme." 

Chorus as before 

A song like this may go on indefinitely or until the 
rhyming powers of the party are exhausted. 

Bird-CaU Match 

In a camp where the members are all familiar with 
the calls of the various wild birds, a bird-call match makes 
a charming game when the party is gathered around the 
camp-fire. The leader begins by whistling or singing 
the call of a wild bird; if it can be put into words so much 
the better. For instance, we will take the first few notes 
of the wood-thrush, which F. Schuyler Mathews has put 
into notes and words as follows: 




CQYne to me ^ I am Keve. 

Wood- thrush. 



26£ On the Trail 

Or the yellow- throated vireo, which he gives in this way: 






Vih^re ore you? 

Yellow vireo. 

If the leader is correct the next player gives the call of 
another bird. When a player gives a bird call which is 
known to be incorrect — that is, absolutely wrong — and 
some one else can supply the proper rendering, the first 
player is dropped from the game just as a person is dropped 
out of a spelling-match when she misspells a word.- 
If there is no one who can give the call correctly, she re- 
tains her place. This is excellent training in woodcraft 
as well as a fascinating game. Your ears will be quickened 
to hear and to identify the bird calls by playing it; and 
storing bird notes in your memory for use in the next 
bird-call match will become a habit. 

Vary the Game 

You can vary this game by giving the calls of wild 
animals and the characteristic noises they make when 
frightened or angry. 

Living even for a short time in the wild will develop 
unsuspected faculties and qualities in your make-up, 
and to perfect yourself in knowledge of the woods and its 
inhabitants will seem of the utmost importance. While 
learning the cries of birds and animals in sport, you will 
wish to retain them in earnest, and to enter the wilderness 
equipped with some knowledge of its languages, will open 
vistas to you that the more ignorant cannot penetrate. 



Camp Fun and Frolics 263 



Lighting the Fire Without a Match 

A fire-lighting contest is the best of camp sports, for it 
requires practise and skill, and to excel in it is to acquire 
distinction among all outdoor people. There are girls in 
the Girl Pioneers Organization who are as proficient in 
lighting a fire without matches as any of the Boy Scouts 
who make much of the feat. 



Bow-and-Drill Method 

The bow-and-drill method is the most popular among 
girls and boys alike, and for this, as for all other ways of 
lighting a fire, you must have the proper appliances and 
will probably have to make them yourself. 

Unlike the bow used for archery, the fire-bow is not to be 
bent by the bow-string but must have a permanent curve. 
Choose a piece of sapling about eighteen or twenty inches 
long which curves evenly; cut a notch around it at each 
end and at the notched places attach a string of rawhide 
of the kind used as shoe-strings in hunting-shoes. Tie the 
bow-string to the bow in the manner shown in Fig. 75, 
and allow it to hang loosely. It must not be taut as for 
archery. 

To the bow must be added the twirling-stick and fire- 
board (Fig. 76). Make these of spruce. The twirling- 
stick, spindle, or fire-drill should be a little over half 
an inch in diameter and sixteen inches long. Its sides 
may be rounded or bevelled in six or seven flat spaces like 
a lead-pencil, as shown in Fig. 76. Cut the top end to a 
blunt point and sharpen the bottom end as you would 
a lead-pencil, leaving the lead blunt. To hold the spindle 
you must have something to protect your hand. A piece of 
soapstone or a piece of very hard wood will answer. This 



MAi\E THE 

30W'5Tf\lNq 

2»LACK 




Fire without matches 



Camp Fun and Frolics 265 

is called the socket-block. In the wood or stone make 
a hole for a socket that will hold the top end of the spindle 
(Fig. 76). 

The flat piece of spruce for your fireboard should be 
about two feet long and a little less than one inch thick. 
Cut a number of triangular notches in one edge of the 
board as in Fig. 76. Make the outer end of each notch 
about half an inch wide, and at the inner end make a 
small, cup-like hole large enough to hold the lower end 
of the twirling-stick. This is called the fire pit. The 
reason you are to have so many notches is because when 
one hole becomes too much enlarged by the drilling of 
the twirling-stick, or is bored all the way through, it is 
discarded and there must be others ready and prepared 
for immediate use. 

Tinder 

All is now ready for creating a spark, but that spark 
cannot live alone, it must have something it can ignite 
before there will be a flame. What is wanted is tinder, 
and tinder can be made of various materials, all of which 
must be absolutely dry. Here is one receipt for making 
tinder given by Daniel C. Beard: "The tinder is com- 
posed of baked and blackened cotton and linen rags. The 
best way to prepare these rags is to bake them until they 
are dry as dust, then place them on the hearth and touch 
a match to them. As soon as they burst into flame, 
smother the flame with a folded newspaper, then carefully 
put your punk (baked and charred rags) into a tin tobacco 
box or some other receptacle where it will keep dry and 
be ready for use." 

This can be prepared at home. In the woods gather 
some of the dry inner bark of the cedar, the fine, stringy 
edges of white or yellow birch, and dry grasses, and dry 
them thoroughly at the camp-fire. 



^66 On the Trail 

Mr. Beard also says: ''You can prepare tinder from 
dry, inflammable woods or barks by grinding or pounding 
them between two flat stones. If you grind up some 
charcoal (taken from your camp-fire) very fine to mix 
with it, this will make it all the more inflammable. A 
good, safe method to get a flame from your fine tinder 
is to wrap up a small amount of it in the shredded bark 
of birch or cedar, so that you may hold it in your hand 
until it ignites from the embers produced by the saw." 

With all your material at hand for starting a fire, make 
one turn around the spindle, with the bow-string, as in 
Fig. 76. Place the point of the lower end of the spindle 
in the small hole or "fire pit" at the inside end of a notch 
in the fireboard, fit the socket-block on the top end of 
the spindle (Fig. 76), and hold it in place with one hand, 
as shown in Fig. 77. Grasp one end of the bow with the 
other hand and saw it back and forth. This will whirl 
the spindle rapidly and cause the friction which makes 
the heat that produces the spark. When it begins to 
smoke, fan it with your hand and light your tinder from 
the sparks. 

Without the Bow 

Fig. 78 shows a method which is the same as Fig. 77, 
the only difference being that the bow is dispensed with, 
the hands alone being used for twirling the spindle. While 
simpler, it is very difficult to put sufficient force and speed 
into the work to produce fire, and it is a very tiresome 
process. Another way is shown in Fig. 79. It will take 
two girls to work in this fashion. The spindle is whirled 
by pulling the leather shoe-string back and forth. One 
girl holds the spindle and steadies the fireboard while 
the other does the twirling. 




Fire without the bow. 



268 On the Trail 



The Plough 

It is more difficult to produce fire by the plough method 
than with the bow, but it can be done. The appliances 
are simple enough. All you need is a fireboard in which 
a groove or gutter has been cut, and a rubbing-stick to 
push up and down the gutter (Fig. 80). 

Other woods than spruce are used with success for 
fire-drills and fireboards, but all must be dry. These 
are soft maple, cedar, balsam, tamarack, cottonwood 
root, and white, not pitch, pine. 

Bamboo Fire-Saw 

Part of an old bamboo fishing-rod will supply material 
for the fire-saw. Cut off a piece of bamboo about fifteen 
inches long, split it, and sharpen the edge of one piece to 
a knife-like thinness. Lay the other half down with the 
curved surface up and cut a slit in it through which the 
sharp edge of the saw can be passed. One or two girls 
can work this. When there are two, one girl holds the 
slit bamboo down firmly, while the other does the sawing 
(Fig. 81).^ 

Put a little wad of tinder on a dry leaf and arrange it 
where the powdered sawdust will fall on it. When the 
powder becomes sufficiently hot there will be sparks and 
these, falling into the tinder, can be fanned into a flame 
by waving your hand over it. You will not see the spark 
but when smoke arises you will know that it is there. 
Fan gently, else you will blow the fire out, and keep on 
fanning until your flame is started. 



CHAPTER XIV 
HAPPY AND SANE SUNDAY IN CAMP 

It is a good idea to carefully plan for your Sundays in 
camp, have every hour mapped out and never allow the 
time to drag. Make special effort and determine that 
the day shall be the very happiest day of each week, a 
day in which every one of the campers will be especially 
interested and will look forward to with genuine pleasure. 

Sit down quietly and think it all out. You will want 
the day to differ from week-days; you will want it filled 
with the real life, not half-life, the life only of the physical 
and mental, but the true, entire life for each camper; you 
will want to emphasize this higher, inner life, which is 
the spiritual. 

To this end, when you arise in the morning, form the 
resolution that the day shall be a peaceful, enjoyable one 
for all the girls. When you take your morning plunge 
resolve that not only will you be physically clean, but 
you will also be both mentally and spiritually clean; then 
all through the day keep in mind that you can rule your 
thoughts and that you will, for power to do this will be 
given to you from the source of all power. Allow not one 
thought to remain which is not kind, friendly, cheerful, 
and peaceful. Should other thoughts intrude be firm and 
severe with them, have no mercy on them, talk to those 
thoughts as you would to robbers and thieves, tell them 
to go, go, GO, BEGONE, that you have nothing in 
common with them and you command them to go; then 

269 



270 On the Trail 

immediately busy yourself with active work, building the 
fire, cooking, tidying up tlie camp, etc. 

Have your Sunday breakfast especially nice, with a 
few flowers, vines, leaves, or grasses on the table for a 
Sunday centrepiece, and keep the conversation on whole- 
some, happy topics. 

After breakfast is over and the camp in order, with 
all the campers go for a short walk to some attractive 
spot either by the water or inland, and when the place 
is reached, having previously selected certain songs con- 
taining cheerful, religious elements, ask the entire camp 
to join in the singing. If one of the girls can sing a solo, 
let her do so, or it may be that two can sing a duet; then 
sit quietly while one of the group reads something help- 
ful, interesting, and beautiful, which will be verses from 
the Bible probably, but may be one of Emerson's essays, 
or extracts from other thoughtful and helpful writers. 

Close the simple exercises with another hymn and return 
to camp. 

In addition to the camp dinner prepare some one dish 
as a pleasant surprise for the other girls. When dinner 
is over, the dishes washed, and camp again in order, the 
girls should have one hour of quiet, to read, write letters, 
sketch, or lie down and rest. Each camper should respect 
the demands of the hour for quiet and rest and not talk, 
but leave her companions to their own thoughts and oc- 
cupations. If you should see your special friend seated 
off by herself, do not disturb her during the rest hour; 
it is each girl's right to remain unmolested at that time. 

When the hour is up, the campers can each pack her 
portion of the evening meal, and in a moment's time be 
ready to hit the trail, or take the canoe for a paddle to 
the place previously selected where supper is to be en- 
joyed, and if the trip be on land, all may play the ob- 
servation game while on the way. 



Happy and Sane Sunday 271 



Observation Game 

The leader counts 3 to the credit of the girl who first 
sees a squirrel, 2 for the girl who sees the second one, 
and I for every succeeding squirrel discovered by any 
member of the party. A bird counts 6, if identified 12. 
A wood-mouse counts 4, when identified 8. A deer 20, 
beaver 12, muskrat 8, chipmunk 10, porcupine 14, eagle 
30, mink 16, rabbit i. The player holding the highest 
record when reaching the supper grounds is victor. Keep 
your records tacked up in your shelter to compare with 
those you will make on the following Sunday. 

In this game every time a player stumbles on the trail 
5 is taken from her credit; if she falls, she loses 10. 

It is a rule of the game that the winner be congratulated 
by each camper in turn, that she be crowned with a wreath 
of leaves, grasses, or vines and sit at the head of the table. 
Keep this game for your Sunday afternoons and play 
others during the week. 

In the evening, as the campers sit quietly around the 
camp-fire, if the camp director will talk to the girls gently 
and seriously for a little while on some phase of their real 
life, the talk will be welcome and appreciated; then just 
before retiring all should stand while singing the good- 
night song. 

It is hardly possible to present Sunday plans for each 
variety of camp and campers. The suggestions given 
are for helping girl campers to look upon Sunday in its 
true light, and to aid them in working out plans in ac- 
cordance with the purpose of the day, that they may 
enjoy happy, sane Sundays in camp. 



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THE BEARD BOOKS FOR BOYS 

By DAN C. BEARD 
Shelters, Shacks, and Shanties 

Illustrated by the Author $1.25 net 

He gives easily workable directions, accompanied by very 
full illustration, for over fifty shelters, shacks, and shanties, 
ranging from the most primitive shelter to a fully equipped 
log cabin. Boys will find it an invaluable guide in construct- 
ing temporary or permanent shelters in their hikes or en- 
campments. 

Boat-Building and Boating 

A Handy Book for Beginners 

Illustrated by the Author $1.00 net 

The directions for making boats are practical and illustrated 
by simple diagrams, and the work is full of new and suggest- 
ive ideas for all kinds of craft. 

The Boy Pioneers 

Sons of Daniel Boone" 

Illustrated by the Author $1.50 net 

" A book that is truly fine and will probably have a wider 
influence on the Uves of boys into whose hands it falls than 
almost any other book that comes their way." — The Interior. 

The 
Field and Forest Handy Book 

Or, New Ideas for Out of Doors 

Illustrated by the Author $1.50 net 

" Instructions as to ways to build boats and fire-engines, 
make aquariums, rafts and sleds, to camp in a back-yard, etc. 
No better book of the kind exists." — Chicago Record-Herald. 



THE BEARD BOOKS FOR BOYS 

The Jack of All Trades 

Or, New Ideas for American Boys 

lUustfated by the Author $1.50 net 

•' Every boy who is handy with tools of any sort will enjoy this 
book. ' ' — Youth 'j Cotnpanion. 

" Full of new ideas for active boys who like to use tools and see in- 
teresting things growing under their hands." — New York Tribune. 

"A perfect treasure-house of things that delight the soul of a boy." 

— The Interior. 

The Outdoor Handy Book 

For Playground, Field and Forest 

Illustrated by the Author $1.50 net 

*' It tells how to play all sorts of games with marbles, how to make 
and spin more kinds of tops than most boys ever heard of, how to 
make the latest things in plain and fancy kites, where to dig bait and 
how to fish, all about boats and sailing, and a host of other things 
which can be done out of doors. The volume is profusely illustrated 
and will be an unmixed delight to any boy."-— A^^ze; York Tribune. 

The 
American Boys Handy Book 

Or, >Vhat To Do and How To Do It 

Illustrated by the Author $1.50 net 

*^ It tells boys how to make all kinds of things — ^boats, traps, toys, 
puzzles, aquariums, fishing tackle; how to tie knots, splice ropes, 
make bird calls, sleds, blow guns, balloons; how to rear wild birds. 
to train dogs, and do a thousand and one things that boys take de- 
light in. The book is illustrated in such a way that no mistake can 
be made ; and the boy who gets a copy of this boolc will consider 
himself set up in baisiness." — The Indianapolis Journal 



CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SO>3S 






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